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A  KNIGHT 
OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 


THEN  THE  KNIGHTS  LEAPT  ON  TO  THE  DECK  OF  THE  PIRATE. 


A    KNIGHT 
OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

A  TALE  OF 

THE    SIEGE    OF    RHODES 


BY 


G.    A.    HENTY 

Author  of  "When  London  Burned,"  "For  the  Temple,"  "St.  Bartholomew's  Eve," 
"  Under  Drake's  Flag,"  "  Beric  the  Briton,"  etc. 


WITH  TWELVE  ILLUSTRATIONS  BY  RALPH  PEACOCK 
AND  A  PLAN. 


NEW  YORK 

CHARLES     SCRIBNER'S     SONS 
1899 


COPYRIGHT,  1895,  BY 
CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 


TROW  DIRECTORY 

MINTING  AND  BOOKB'NDINQ  COMPANY 
NEW  YORK 


UNIV.  OF  CALIF.  LIBRARY,  LOS  ANGELS 


H39K 


PREFACE 

The  order  of  the  Knights  of  St.  John,  which  for  some  cen- 
turies played  a  very  important  part  in  the  great  struggle  be- 
tween Christianity  and  Mahomedanism,  was,  at  its  origin,  a 
semi  -religious  body,  its  members  being,  like  other  monks, 
bound  by  vows  of  obedience,  chastity,  and  poverty,  and 
pledged  to  minister  to  the  wants  of  the  pilgrims  who  flocked 
to  the  Holy  Places,  to  receive  them  at  their  great  Hospital  — 
or  guest  house  —  at  Jerusalem,  dedicated  to  St.  John  the  Bap- 
tist, and  to  defend  them  on  their  passage  to  and  from  the  sea, 
against  attack  by  Moslems.  In  a  comparatively  short  time 
the  constitution  of  the  order  was  changed,  and  the  Knights 
Hospitallers  became,  like  the  Templars,  a  great  military  Order 
pledged  to  defend  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  and  to  war  everywhere 
against  the  Moslems.  The  Hospitallers  bore  a  leading  share 
in  the  struggle  which  terminated  in  the  triumph  of  the  Mos- 
lems, and  the  capture  by  them  of  Jerusalem.  The  Knights 
of  St.  John  then  established  themselves  at  Acre,  but  after  a 
valiant  defence  of  that  fortress,  removed  to  Crete,  and  shortly 
afterwards  to  Rhodes.  There  they  fortified  the  town,  and 
withstood  two  terrible  sieges  by  the  Turks.  At  the  end  of 
the  second  they  obtained  honourable  terms  from  Sultan  Soly- 
man,  and  retiring  to  Malta  established  themselves  there  in  an 


6  PREFACE 

even  stronger  fortress  than  that  of  Rhodes,  and  repulsed  all 
the  efforts  of  the  Turks  to  dispossess  them.  The  Order  was 
the  great  bulwark  of  Christendom  against  the  invasion  of  the 
Turks,  and  the  tale  of  their  long  struggle  is  one  of  absorbing 
interest,  and  of  the  many  eventful  episodes  none  is  more  full 
of  incident  and  excitement  than  the  first  siege  of  Rhodes, 
which  I  have  chosen  for  the  subject  of  my  story. 

G.  A.  HENTY. 


CONTENTS 

CHAP.  PAGE 

I.     THE  KING-MAKER, n 

II.  THE  BATTLE  OF  TEWKESBURY,      .         .         .29 

III.  THE  GRAND  MASTER'S  PAGE,       .         .         -45 

IV.  A  PROFESSED  KNIGHT,          .         .         .         .62 
V.  SCOURGES  OF  THE  SEA,         .         .         .         .     78 

VI.     KNIGHTED, 94 

VII.  A  FIRST  COMMAND,      .         .         .         .         .no 

VIII.  AN  EVENING  AT  RHODES,     .         .         .         .126 

IX.  WITH  THE  GALLEY-SLAVES,  .         .         .         .142 

X.     A  PLOT  DISCOVERED, 158 

XI.  IN  COMMAND  OF  A  GALLEY,         .         .         -174 

X.II.     THE  BOY-GALLEY, 189 

XIII.  THE  FIRST  PRIZES, 204 

XIV.  THE  CORSAIR  FLEET,  .         .         .         .         .224 
XV.     A  SPLENDID  EXPLOIT, 241 

XVI.  FESTIVITIES,          .         .         .         .         .         -255 

XVII.     CAPTURED, 274 


8 


CONTENTS 

CHAP. 

XVIII.     A  KIND  MASTER, 
XIX.     ESCAPE,        . 
XX.     BELEAGUERED, 


PAGE 

293 

313 

330 

XXI.     THE  FORT  OF  ST.  NICHOLAS,         .         .         .347 

XXII.     THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH,  .         .         .  364 

XXIII.     THE  REWARD  OF  VALOUR,    .         .         .  g7 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

'  THEN   THE   KNIGHTS    LEAPT    ON    TO    THE    DECK   OF  THE 

PIRATE," Frontispiece^       75 

SIR  THOMAS  TRESHAM  BRINGS  HIS  WIFE  NEWS  OF  THE  LOST 

BATTLE,        .....        27 

GERVAISE  AND  RALPH  ARE  KNIGHTED  BY  THE  GRAND  PRIOR,     104 

"A  GIRL  WAS   PLAYING  A  LUTE,  AND   ANOTHER   SINGING  TO 

HER.  ACCOMPANIMENT," 135 

SIR  GERVAISE   IN   PRISON   ANSWERS  THE  QUESTIONS  OF  THE 

GALLEY-SLAVES, 155 

"YOU  HAVE  BEEN  ATTACKED  BY  PIRATES,"  GERVAISE  SAID,      .    2O7 

THE  THREE  KNIGHTS  OF  THE  CROSS  GIVE  THANKS  FOR  THEIR 

RELEASE, 219 

CLAUDIA  GIVES  SIR  GERVAISE  A  CHAIN  OF  GOLD  TO  WEAR  AS 

HER  FAVOUR, 267 

SIR  GERVAISE  is  DISGUISED  AS  A  NUBIAN  SLAVE,     .        .        .     298 

"  GERVAISE  GRASPED  HASSAN  BY  THE  THROAT  WITH  A  GRIP  OF 

IRON," 320 

"WITH  WILD  SHOUTS  THE  TURKS  SWARMED  UP  THE  RUINED 

MASONRY," 357 

SIR  GERVAISE  FINDS  HIMSELF  LYING  IN  THE  HOSPITAL  OF  THE 

ORDER, 387 


Plan  of  the  Fortress  of  Rhodes, 


A  KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 


CHAPTER  I 

THE   KING-MAKER 


STATELY  lady  was  looking  out  of  the  window 
of  an  apartment  in  the  Royal  Chateau  of  Amboise, 
in  the  month  of  June  1470.  She  was  still  hand- 
some, though  many  years  of  anxiety,  misfortune, 
and  trouble,  had  left  their  traces  on  her  face.  In  the  room 
behind  her,  a  knight  was  talking  to  a  lady  sitting  at  a  tam- 
bour frame ;  a  lad  of  seventeen  was  standing  at  another  win- 
dow stroking  a  hawk  that  sat  on  his  wrist,  while  a  boy  of  nine 
was  seated  at  a  table  examining  the  pages  of  an  illuminated 
missal. 

"  What  will  come  of  it,  Eleanor?  "  the  lady  at  the  win- 
dow said,  turning  suddenly  and  impatiently  from  it.  "  It 
seems  past  belief  that  I  am  to  meet  as  a  friend  this  haughty 
Earl,  who  has  for  fifteen  years  been  the  bitterest  enemy  of  my 
House.  It  appears  almost  impossible." 

"  'Tis  strange  indeed,  my  Queen ;  but  so  many  strange 
things  have  befallen  your  Majesty  that  you  should  be  the  last 
to  wonder  at  this.  At  any  rate,  as  you  said  but  yesterday, 
naught  but  good  can  come  of  it.  He  has  done  his  worst 
against  you,  and  one  can  scarce  doubt  that  if  he  chooses  he 

ii 


12  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE    WHITE   CROSS 

has  power  to  do  as  much  good  for  you,  as  in  past  times  he  has 
done  you  evil.  'Tis  certain  that  his  coming  here  shows  he  is 
in  earnest,  for  Ris  presence, — which  is  sure  sooner  or  later  to 
come  to  the  ears  of  the  Usurper, — will  cause  him  to  fall  into 
the  deepest  disgrace. ' ' 

"  And  yet  it  seemed,"  the  queen  said,  "  that  by  marrying 
his  daughter  to  Clarence  he  had  bound  himself  more  firmly 
than  ever  to  the  side  of  York." 

"Ay,  madam,"  the  knight  said.  "But  Clarence  himself 
is  said  to  be  alike  unprincipled  and  ambitious,  and  it  may 
well  be  that  Warwick  intended  to  set  him  up  against  Edward  ; 
had  he  not  done  so,  such  an  alliance  would  not  necessarily 
strengthen  his  position  at  Court." 

"  Methinks  your  supposition  is  the  true  one,  Sir  Thom- 
as," the  queen  said.  "  Edward  cares  not  sufficiently  for  his 
brother  to  bestow  much  favour  upon  the  father  of  the  prince's 
wife.  Thus,  he  would  gain  but  little  by  the  marriage  unless 
he  were  to  place  Clarence  on  the  throne.  Then  he  would 
again  become  the  real  ruler  of  England,  as  he  was  until  Ed- 
ward married  Elizabeth  Wood vi lie,  and  the  House  of  Rivers 
rose  to  the  first  place  in  the  royal  favour,  and  eclipsed  the 
Star  of  Warwick.  It  is  no  wonder  the  proud  Earl  chafes  un- 
der the  ingratitude  of  the  man  who  owes  his  throne  to  him, 
and  that  he  is  ready  to  dare  everything  so  that  he  can  but 
prove  to  him  that  he  is  not  to  be  slighted  with  impunity. 
But  why  come  to  me,  when  he  has  Clarence  as  his  puppet  ?  ' ' 

"  He  may  have  convinced  himself,  madam,  that  Clarence 
is  even  less  to  be  trusted  than  Edward,  or  he  may  perceive 
that  but  few  of  the  Yorkists  would  follow  him  were  he  to  de- 
clare against  the  Usurper,  while  assuredly  your  adherents 
would  stand  aloof  altogether  from  such  a  struggle.  Powerful 
as  he  is,  Warwick  could  not  alone  withstand  the  united  forces 
of  all  the  nobles  pledged  to  the  support  of  the  House  of  York. 
Thence,  as  I  take  it,  does  it  happen  that  he  has  resolved  to 
throw  in  his  lot  with  Lancaster,  if  your  Majesty  will  but  for- 


THE    KING-MAKER 


13 


give  the  evil  he  has  done  your  House  and  accept  him  as  your 
ally.  No  doubt  he  will  have  terms  to  make  and  conditions  to 
lay  down." 

"  He  may  make  what  conditions  he  chooses,"  Queen  Mar- 
garet said  passionately,  ' '  so  that  he  does  but  aid  me  to  take 
vengeance  on  that  false  traitor ;  to  place  my  husband  again  on 
the  throne  ;  and  to  obtain  for  my  son  his  rightful  heritage." 

As  she  spoke  a  trumpet  sounded  in  the  courtyard  below. 

"  He  has  come,"  she  exclaimed.  "  Once  again,  after 
years  of  misery  and  humiliation,  I  can  hope." 

"  We  had  best  retire,  madam,"  Sir  Thomas  Tresham  said. 
"  He  will  speak  more  freely  to  your  Majesty  if  there  are  no 
witnesses.  Come,  Gervaise,  it  is  time  that  you  practised 
your  exercises."  And  Sir  Thomas,  with  his  wife  and  child, 
quitted  the  room,  leaving  Queen  Margaret  with  her  son  to 
meet  the  man  who  had  been  the  bitterest  foe  of  her  House, 
the  author  of  her  direst  misfortunes. 

For  two  hours  the  Earl  of  Warwick  was  closeted  with  the 
queen  ;  then  he  took  horse  and  rode  away.  As  soon  as  he  did 
so,  a  servant  informed  Sir  Thomas  and  his  wife  that  the  queen 
desired  their  presence.  Margaret  was  standing  radiant  when 
they  entered. 

"  Congratulate  me,  my  friends,"  she  said.  "  The  Star  of 
Lancaster  has  risen  again.  Warwick  has  placed  all  his  power 
and  influence  at  our  disposal.  We  have  both  forgiven  all  the 
past :  I  the  countless  injuries  he  has  inflicted  on  my  House, 
he  the  execution  of  his  father  and  so  many  of  his  friends.  We 
have  both  laid  aside  all  our  grievances,  and  we  stand  united  by 
our  hate  for  Edward.  There  is  but  one  condition,  and  this 
I  accepted  gladly — namely,  that  my  son  should  marry  his 
daughter  Anne.  This  will  be  another  bond  between  us ;  and 
by  all  reports  Anne  is  a  charming  young  lady.  Edward  has 
gladly  agreed  to  -the  match  ;  he  could  make  no  alliance,  even 
with  the  proudest  princess  in  Europe,  which  would  so  aid 
him,  and  so  strengthen  his  throne." 


14  A    KNIGHT    OF   THE   WHITE    CROSS 

"  God  grant  that  your  hopes  may  be  fulfilled,  madam,"  the 
knight  said  earnestly,  "  and  that  peace  may  be  given  to  our 
distracted  country !  The  Usurper  has  rendered  himself  un- 
popular by  his  extravagance  and  by  the  exactions  of  his  tax- 
collectors,  and  I  believe  that  England  will  gladly  welcome  the 
return  of  its  lawful  king  to  power.  When  does  Warwick  pro- 
pose to  begin  ?  ' ' 

' '  He  will  at  once  get  a  fleet  together.  Louis,  who  has 
privately  brought  about  this  meeting,  will  of  course  throw  no 
impediment  in  his  way ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  the  Duke  of 
Burgundy  will  do  all  in  his  power  to  thwart  the  enterprise, 
and  will,  as  soon  as  he  learns  of  it,  warn  Edward.  I  feel  new 
life  in  me,  Eleanor.  After  fretting  powerless  for  years,  I  seem 
to  be  a  different  woman  now  that  there  is  a  prospect  of  action. 
I  am  rejoiced  at  the  thought  that  at  last  I  shall  be  able  to  re- 
ward those  who  have  ventured  and  suffered  so  much  in  the 
cause  of  Lancaster. ' ' 

"  My  hope  is,  madam,  that  this  enterprise  will  be  the  final 
one, — that,  once  successful,  our  dear  land  will  be  no  longer  del- 
uged with  blood,  and  that  never  again  shall  I  be  forced  to 
draw  my  sword  against  my  countrymen." 

"  'Tis  a  good  and  pious  wish,  Sir  Thomas,  and  heartily  do 
I  join  in  it.  My  married  life  has  been  one  long  round  of 
trouble,  and  none  more  than  I,  have  cause  to  wish  for  peace." 

"  There  is  the  more  hope  for  it,  madam,  that  these  wars 
have  greatly  diminished  the  number  of  powerful  barons.  It 
is  they  who  are  the  authors  of  this  struggle  ;  their  rivalries  and 
their  ambitions  are  the  ruin  of  England.  Save  for  their  re- 
tainers there  would  be  no  armies  to  place  in  the  field  ;  the 
mass  of  people  stand  aloof  altogether,  desiring  only  to  live  in 
peace  and  quiet.  'Tis  the  same  here  in  France  ;  'tis  the  pow- 
erful vassals  of  the  king  that  are  ever  causing  trouble. ' ' 

"  'Tis  so  indeed,  Sir  Thomas.  But  without  his  feudal  lords 
how  could  a  king  place  an  army  in  the  field,  when  his  domin- 
ions were  threatened  by  a  powerful  neighbour?  " 


THE    KING-MAKER  15 

"  Then  it  would  be  the  people's  business  to  fight,  madam, 
and  I  doubt  not  that  they  would  do  so  in  defence  of  their 
hearths  and  homes.  Besides,  the  neighbour  would  no  longer 
have  the  power  of  invasion  were  he  also  without  great  vassals. 
These  great  barons  stand  between  the  king  and  his  subjects ; 
and  a  monarch  would  be  a  king  indeed  were  he  able  to  rule 
without  their  constant  dictation,  and  undisturbed  by  their 
rivalry  and  ambitions." 

"  That  would  be  a  good  time  indeed,  Sir  Thomas,"  the 
queen  said,  with  a  smile ;  "but  methinks  there  is  but  little 
chance  of  its  coming  about,  for  at  present  it  seems  to  me  that 
the  vassals  are  better  able  to  make  or  unmake  kings,  than 
kings  are  able  to  deprive  the  great  vassals  of  power ;  and 
never  since  Norman  William  set  foot  in  England  were  they 
more  powerful  than  they  are  at  present.  What  does  my 
chance  of  recovering  our  throne  rest  upon  ?  Not  upon  our 
right,  but  on  the -quarrel  between  Warwick  and  the  House  of 
Rivers.  We  are  but  puppets  that  the  great  lords  play  against 
each  other.  Did  it  depend  upon  my  will,  it  should  be  as  you 
say  ;  I  would  crush  them  all  at  a  blow.  Then  only  should  I 
feel  really  a  queen.  But  that  is  but  a  dream  that  can  never 
be  carried  out." 

"  Not  in  our  time,  madam.  But  perhaps  it  may  come 
sooner  than  we  expect;  and  this  long  war,  which  has  de- 
stroyed many  great  families  and  weakened  others,  may  greatly 
hasten  its  arrival.  I  presume  until  Warwick  is  ready  to  move 
naught  will  be  done,  your  Majesty  ?  ' ' 

"  That  is  not  settled  yet.  Warwick  spoke  somewhat  of 
causing  a  rising  in  the  north  before  he  set  sail,  so  that  a  por- 
tion at  least  of  Edward's  power  may  be  up  there  when  we 
make  our  landing." 

"  It  would  be  a  prudent  step,  madam.  If  we  can  but  gain 
possession  of  London,  the  matter  would  be  half  finished. 
The  citizens  are  ever  ready  to  take  sides  with  those  whom 
they  regard  as  likely  to  win,  and  just  as  they  shout  at  present 


16  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE   WHITE   CROSS 

'  Long  live  King  Edward  !  '  so  would  they  shout  '  Long  live 
King  Henry  !  '  did  you  enter  the  town." 

1 '  This  may  perhaps  change  the  thought  that  you  have  enter- 
tained, Sir  Thomas,  of  making  your  son  a  Knight  of  St.  John." 

"  I  have  not  thought  the  matter  over,  madam.  If  there 
were  quiet  in  the  land  I  should,  were  it  not  for  my  vow,  be 
well  content  that  he  should  settle  down  in  peace  at  my  old 
hall ;  but  if  I  see  that  there  is  still  trouble  and  bloodshed 
ahead,  I  would  in  any  case  far  rather  that  he  should  enter  the 
Order,  and  spend  his  life  in  fighting  the  infidel  than  in  strife 
with  Englishmen.  My  good  friend,  the  Grand  Prior  of  the 
Order  in  England,  has  promised  that  he  will  take  him  as  his 
page,  and  at  any  rate  in  the  House  of  St.  John's  he  will  pass 
his  youth  in  security  whatsoever  fate  may  befall  me.  The 
child  himself  already  bids  fair  to  do  honour  to  our  name,  and 
to  become  a  worthy  member  of  the  Order.  He  is  fond  of 
study,  and  under  my  daily  tuition  is  making  good  progress  in 
the  use  of  his  weapons. ' ' 

"  That  is  he,"  the  prince  said,  speaking  for  the  first  time. 
"  It  was  but  yesterday  in  the  great  hall  downstairs  he  stood 
up  with  blunted  swords  against  young  Victor  de  Paulliac,  who 
is  nigh  three  years  his  senior.  It  was  amusing  to  see  how  the 
little  knaves  fought  against  each  other  ;  and  by  my  faith  Ger- 
vaise  held  his  own  staunchly,  in  spite  of  Victor's  superior 
height  and  weight.  If  he  join  the  Order,  Sir  Thomas,  I  war- 
rant me  he  will  cleave  many  an  infidel's  skull,  and  will  do 
honour  to  the  langue  of  England." 

"  I  hope  so,  prince,"  the  knight  said  gravely.  "  The 
Moslems  ever  gain  in  power,  and  it  may  well  be  that  the 
Knights  of  St.  John  will  be  hardly  pressed  to  hold  their 
own.  If  the  boy  joins  them  it  will  be  my  wish  that  he  shall 
as  early  as  possible  repair  to  Rhodes.  I  do  not  wish  him  to 
become  one  of  the  drones  who  live  in  sloth  at  their  comman- 
deries  in  England,  and  take  no  part  in  the  noble  struggle  of 
the  Order  with  the  Moslem  host,  who  have  captured  Con- 


THE    KING-MAKER  17 

stantinople  and  now  threaten  all  Europe.  We  were  childless 
for  some  years  after  our  marriage,  and  Eleanor  and  I  vowed 
that  were  a  son  born  to  us  he  should  join  the  Order  of  the 
White  Cross,  and  dedicate  his  life  to  the  defence  of  Christian 
Europe  against  the  infidel.  Our  prayers  for  a  son  were 
granted,  and  Gervaise  will  enter  the  Order  as  soon  as  his  age 
will  permit  him.  That  is  why  I  rejoice  at  the  grand  prior's 
offer  to  take  him  as  his  page,  for  he  will  dwell  in  the  hospital 
safely  until  old  enough  to  take  the  first  steps  towards  becoming 
a  knight  of  the  Order." 

"  I  would  that  I  had  been  born  the  son  of  a  baron  like 
yourself,"  the  prince  said  earnestly,  "  and  that  I  were  free  to 
choose  my  own  career.  Assuredly  in  that  case  I  too  would 
have  joined  the  noble  Order  and  have  spent  my  life  in  fight- 
ing in  so  grand  a  cause,  free  from  all  the  quarrels  and  disputes 
and  enmities  that  rend  England.  Even  should  I  some  day 
gain  a  throne,  surely  my  lot  is  not  to  be  envied.  Yet,  as  I 
have  been  born  to  the  rank,  I  must  try  for  it,  and  I  trust  to 
do  so  worthily  and  bravely.  But  who  can  say  what  the  end 
will  be  ?  Warwick  has  ever  been  our  Foe,  and  though  my 
royal  mother  may  use  him  in  order  to  free  my  father,  and 
place  him  on  the  throne,  she  must  know  well  enough  that  he 
but  uses  us  for  his  own  ends  alone,  and  that  he  will  ever  stand 
beside  the  throne  and  be  the  real  ruler  of  England." 

"  For  a  time,  Edward,"  the  queen  broke  in.  "  We  have 
shown  that  we  can  wait,  and  now  it  seems  that  our  great  hope 
is  likely  to  be  fulfilled.  After  that,  the  rest  will  be  easy. 
There  are  other  nobles,  well-nigh  as  powerful  as  he,  who  look 
with  jealousy  upon  the  way  in  which  he  lords  it,  and  be  as- 
sured that  they  will  look  with  a  still  less  friendly  eye  upon 
him  when  he  stands,  as  you  say,  beside  the  throne,  once  your 
father  is  again  seated  there.  We  can  afford  to  bide  our  time, 
and  assuredly  it  will  not  be  long  before  a  party  is  formed 
against  Warwick.  Until  then  we  must  bear  everything.  Our 
interests  are  the  same.  If  he  is  content  to  remain  a  prop  to 


18  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

the  throne,  and  not  to  eclipse  it,  the  memory  of  the  past  will 
not  stand  between  us,  and  I  shall  regard  him  as  the  weapon 
that  has  beaten  down  the  House  of  York  and  restored  us  to 
our  own,  and  shall  give  him  my  confidence  and  friendship. 
If,  on  the  other  hand,  he  assumes  too  much,  and  tries  to  lord 
it  over  us,  I  shall  seek  other  support  and  gather  a  party  which 
even  he  will  be  unable  successfully  to  withstand.  I  should 
have  thought,  Edward,  that  you  would  be  even  more  glad 
than  I  that  this  long  time  of  weary  waiting  for  action  is  over, 
and  that  once  again  the  banner  of  Lancaster  will  be  spread  to 
the  winds." 

"  I  shall  be  that,  mother.  Rather  would  I  meet  death  in 
the  field  than  live  cooped  up  here,  a  pensioner  of  France. 
But  I  own  that  I  should  feel  more  joy  at  the  prospect  if  the 
people  of  England  had  declared  in  our  favour,  instead  of  its 
being  Warwick, — whom  you  have  always  taught  me  to  fear 
and  hate, — who  thus  comes  to  offer  to  place  my  father  again 
on  the  throne,  and  whose  goodwill  towards  us  is  simply  the 
result  of  pique  and  displeasure  because  he  is  no  longer  first  in 
the  favour  of  Edward.  It  does  not  seem  to  me  that  a  throne 
won  by  the  aid  of  a  traitor  can  be  a  stable  one. ' ' 

"You  are  a  foolish  boy,"  the  queen  said  angrily.  "Do 
you  not  see  that  by  marrying  Warwick's  daughter  you  will  at- 
tach him  firmly  to  us  ?  " 

"  Marriages  do  not  count  for  much,  mother.  Another  of 
Warwick's  daughters  married  Clarence,  Edward's  brother,  and 
yet  he  purposes  to  dethrone  Edward. ' ' 

The  queen  gave  an  angry  gesture  and  said, — 

"  You  have  my  permission  to  retire,  Edward.  I  am  in  no 
mood  to  listen  to  auguries  of  evil  at  the  present  moment." 

The  prince  hesitated  for  a  moment  as  if  about  to  speak,  but 
with  an  effort  controlled  himself,  and  bowing  deeply,  to  his 
mother,  left  the  room. 

"Edward  is  in  a  perverse  humour,"  the  queen  said  in  a 
tone  of  much  vexation  to  Sir  Thomas  Tresham,  when  Gervaise 


THE    KING-MAKER  19 

had  left  the  room.     "  However,  I  know  he  will  bear  himself 
well  when  the  hour  of  trial  comes. ' ' 

"  That  I  can  warrant  he  will,  madam ;  he  has  a  noble  char- 
acter, frank  and  fearless,  and  yet  thoughtful  beyond  his  years. 
He  will  make,  I  believe,  a  noble  king,  and  may  well  gather 
round  him  all  parties  in  the  state.  But  your  Majesty  must 
make  excuses  for  his  humour.  Young  people  are  strong  in  their 
likes  and  dislikes.  He  has  never  heard  you  speak  aught  but 
ill  of  Warwick,  and  he  knows  how  much  harm  the  Earl  has 
done  to  your  House.  The  question  of  expediency  does  not 
weigh  with  the  young  as  with  their  elders.  While  you  see 
how  great  are  the  benefits  that  will  accrue  from  an  alliance 
with  Warwick,  and  are  ready  to  lay  aside  the  hatred  of  years 
and  to  forget  the  wrongs  you  have  suffered,  the  young  prince 
is  unable  so  quickly  to  forget  that  enmity  against  the  Earl  that 
he  has  learnt  from  you." 

"  You  are  right,  Sir  Thomas,  and  I  cannot  blame  Edward 
that  he  is  unable,  as  I  am,  to  forget  the  past.  What  steps 
would  you  advise  that  I  myself  should  take  ?  Shall  I  remain 
passive  here,  or  shall  I  do  what  I  can  to  rouse  our  partisans  in 
England?" 

"  I  should  say  the  latter,  madam.  Of  course  it  will  not  do 
to  trust  to  letters,  for  were  one  of  these  to  fall  into  wrong 
hands  it  might  cause  the  ruin  of  Warwick's  expedition  ;  but  I 
should  say  that  a  cautious  message  sent  by  word  of  mouth  to 
some  of  our  old  adherents  would  be  of  great  use.  I  myself 
will,  if  your  Majesty  chooses  to  entrust  me  with  the  mission, 
undertake  to  carry  it  out.  I  should  take  ship  and  land  in  the 
west,  and  would  travel  in  the  guise  of  a  simple  country  gen- 
tleman, and  call  upon  your  adherents  in  all  the  western  coun- 
ties. It  would  be  needful  first  to  make  out  a  list  of  the  nobles 
who  have  shown  themselves  devoted  to  your  cause,  and  I 
should  bid  these  hold  themselves  and  their  retainers  in  readi- 
ness to  take  the  field  suddenly.  I  should  say  no  word  of 
Warwick,  but  merely  hint  that  you  will  not  land  alone,  but 


20  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

with  a  powerful  array,  and  that  all  the  chances  are  in  your 
favour. ' ' 

"  But  it  would  be  a  dangerous  mission,  Sir  Thomas." 

"  Not  greatly  so,  madam.  My  own  estates  lie  in  Sussex, 
and  there  would  be  but  little  chance  of  my  recognition,  save 
by  your  own  adherents,  who  may  have  seen  me  among  the 
leaders  of  your  troops  in  battle ;  and  even  that  is  improb- 
able. At  present  Edward  deems  himself  so  securely  seated  on 
the  throne  that  men  can  travel  hither  and  thither  through  the 
country  without  being  questioned,  and  the  Lancastrians  live 
quietly  with  the  Yorkists.  Unless  I  were  so  unfortunate  as 
to  meet  a  Yorkist  noble  who  knew  that  I  was  a  banished  man 
and  one  who  had  the  honour  of  being  in  your  Majesty's  confi- 
dence, I  do  not  think  that  any  danger  could  possibly  arise. 
What  say  you,  wife  ?  ' ' 

"  I  cannot  think  that  there  is  no  danger,"  Lady  Tresham 
said  ;  "  but  even  so  I  would  not  say  a  word  to  hinder  you 
from  doing  service  to  the  cause.  I  know  of  no  one  else  who 
could  perform  the  mission.  You  have  left  my  side  to  go  into 
battle  before  now,  and  I  cannot  think  that  the  danger  of  such 
an  expedition  can  be  as  great  as  that  which  you  would  under- 
go in  the  field.  Therefore,  my  dear  lord,  I  would  say  no 
word  now  to  stay  you." 

She  spoke  bravely  and  unfalteringly,  but  her  face  had  paled 
when  Sir  Thomas  first  made  the  proposal,  and  the  colour  had 
not  yet  come  back  to  her  cheeks. 

"  Bravely  spoken,  dame,'*  the  queen  said  warmly.  "Well, 
Sir  Thomas,  I  accept  your  offer,  and  trust  that  you  will  not  be 
long  separated  from  your  wife  and  son,  who  will  of  course 
journey  with  me  when  I  go  to  England,  where  doubtless  you 
will  be  able  to  rejoin  us  a  few  days  after  we  land.  Now  let 
us  talk  over  the  noblemen  and  gentlemen  in  the  west,  upon 
whom  we  can  rely,  if  not  to  join  our  banner  as  soon  as  it  is 
spread,  at  least  to  say  no  word  that  will  betray  you." 

Two  days  later  Sir  Thomas  Tresham  started  on  his  journey, 


THE   KING-MAKER  21 

while  the  queen  remained  at  Amboise  eagerly  awaiting  the 
news  that  Warwick  had  collected  a  fleet,  and  was  ready  to  set 
sail.  Up  to  this  point  the  Duke  of  Clarence  had  sided  with 
Warwick  against  his  brother,  and  had  passed  over  with  him 
to  France,  believing,  no  doubt,  that  if  the  Earl  should  suc- 
ceed in  dethroning  Edward,  he  intended  to  place  him,  his  son- 
in-law,  upon  the  throne.  He  was  rudely  awakened  from  this 
delusion  by  Charles  of  Burgundy,  who,  being  in  all  but  open 
rebellion  against  his  suzerain,  the  King  of  France,  kept  him- 
self intimately  acquainted  with  all  that  was  going  on.  He 
despatched  a  female  emissary  to  Clarence  to  inform  him  of  the 
league  Warwick  had  made  with  the  Lancastrians,  and  the  in- 
tended marriage  between  his  daughter  Anne  and  the  young 
prince  ;  imploring  him  to  be  reconciled  with  his  brother  and 
to  break  off  his  alliance  with  the  Earl,  who  was  on  the  point 
of  waging  war  against  the  House  of  York. 

Clarence  took  the  advice,  and  went  over  to  England,  where 
he  made  his  peace  with  Edward,  the  more  easily  because  the 
king,  who  was  entirely  given  up  to  pleasure,  treated  with  con- 
tempt the  warnings  the  Duke  of  Burgundy  sent  him  of  the 
intended  invasion  by  Warwick.  And  yet  a  moment's  serious 
reflection  should  have  shown  him  that  his  position  was  pre- 
carious. The  crushing  exactions  of  the  tax-gatherers,  in  order 
to  provide  the  means  for  Edward's  lavish  expenditure,  had 
already  caused  very  serious  insurrections  in  various  parts  of  the 
country,  and  his  unpopularity  was  deep  and  general.  In  one 
of  these  risings  the  royal  troops  had  suffered  a  crushing  defeat. 
The  Earl  Rivers,  the  father,  and  Sir  John  Woodville,  one  of  the 
brothers,  of  the  queen  had,  with  the  Earl  of  Devon,  been  capt- 
ured by  the  rebels,  and  the  three  had  been  beheaded,  and  the 
throne  had  only  been  saved  by  the  intervention  of  Warwick. 

Thus,  then,  Edward  had  every  reason  for  fearing  the  result 
should  the  Earl  appear  in  arms  against  him.  He  took,  how- 
ever, no  measures  whatever  to  prepare  for  the  coming  storm, 
and  although  the  Duke  of  Burgundy  despatched  a  fleet  to 


22  A  KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

blockade  Harfleur,  where  Warwick  was  fitting  out  his  expedi- 
tion, and  actually  sent  the  name  of  the  port  at  which  the  Earl 
intended  to  land  if  his  fleet  managed  to  escape  from  Harfleur, 
Edward  continued  carelessly  to  spend  his  time  in  pleasure  and 
dissipation,  bestowing  his  full  confidence  upon  the  Archbishop 
of  York  and  the  Marquis  of  Montague,  both  brothers  of  the 
Earl  of  Warwick. 

The  elements  favoured  his  enemies,  for  early  in  September 
the  Duke  of  Burgundy's  Fleet,  off  Harfleur,  was  dispersed  by 
a  storm,  and  Warwick,  as  soon  as  the  gale  abated,  set  sail,  and 
on  the  1 3th  landed  on  the  Devonshire  coast.  His  force  was  a 
considerable  one,  for  the  French  king  had  furnished  him  both 
with  money  and  men ;  on  effecting  his  landing  he  found  no 
army  assembled  to  oppose  him.  A  few  hours  after  his  disem- 
barkation, he  was  joined  by  Sir  Thomas  Tresham,  who  gave 
him  the  good  news  that  the  whole  of  the  west  was  ready  to 
rise,  and  that  in  a  few  days  all  the  great  landowners  would 
join  him  with  their  retainers.  This  turned  out  to  be  the  case, 
and  Warwick,  with  a  great  array,  marched  eastward.  Kent 
had  already  risen,  and  London  declared  for  King  Henry. 
Warwick,  therefore,  instead  of  marching  thither,  moved  to- 
wards Lincolnshire,  where  Edward  was  with  his  army,  having 
gone  north  to  repress  an  insurrection  that  had  broken  out 
there  at  the  instigation  of  Warwick. 

Lord  Montague  now  threw  off  the  mask,  and  declared  for 
King  Henry.  Most  of  the  soldiers  followed  him,  and  Edward, 
finding  it  hopeless  to  oppose  Warwick's  force,  which  was  now 
within  a  short  march  of  him,  took  ship  with  a  few  friends  who 
remained  faithful,  and  sailed  for  Holland.  Warwick  returned 
to  London,  where  he  took  King  Henry  from  the  dungeon  in 
the  Tower,  into  which  he  himself  had,  five  years  before,  thrown 
him,  and  proclaimed  him  king. 

On  the  day  that  this  took  place  Dame  Tresham  arrived  in 
London  with  her  son.  The  queen  had  found  that  she  could 
not  for  the  present  cross,  as  she  was  waiting  for  a  large  French 


THE   KING-MAKER  23 

force  which  was  to  accompany  her.  As  it  was  uncertain  how 
long  the  delay  might  last,  she  counselled  her  friend  to  join  her 
husband.  The  revolution  had  been  accomplished  without  the 
loss  of  a  single  life,  with  the  exception  of  that  of  the  Earl  of 
Worcester,  who  was  hated  for  his  cruelty  by  the  people.  Ed- 
ward's principal  friends  took  refuge  in  various  religious  houses. 
The  queen,  her  three  daughters,  and  her  mother,  fled  to  the 
sanctuary  at  Westminster.  All  these  were  left  unmolested, 
nor  was  any  step  taken  against  the  other  adherents  of  the 
House  of  York.  Warwick  was  now  virtually  King  of  Eng- 
land. The  king,  whose  intellect  had  always  been  weak,  was 
now  almost  an  imbecile,  and  Margaret  of  Anjou  was  still  de- 
tained in  France.  Sir  Thomas  Tresham  went  down  to  his 
estates  in  Kent,  and  there  lived  quietly  for  some  months. 

The  Duke  of  Clarence  had  joined  Warwick  as  soon  as  he 
saw  that  his  brother's  cause  was  lost ;  and  as  the  Duke  had  no 
knowledge  of  his  changed  feelings  towards  him,  he  was  heartily 
welcomed.  An  act  of  settlement  was  passed  by  Parliament 
entailing  the  Crown  on  Henry's  son  Edward,  Prince  of  Wales, 
and  in  case  of  that  prince's  death  without  issue,  on  the  Duke 
of  Clarence.  On  the  i2th  of  March  following  (1471)  Ed- 
ward suddenly  appeared  with  a  fleet  with  which  he  had  been 
secretly  supplied  by  the  Duke  of  Burgundy,  and,  sailing  north, 
landed  in  the  Humber.  He  found  the  northern  population 
by  no  means  disposed  to  aid  him,  but  upon  his  taking  a 
solemn  oath  that  he  had  no  designs  whatever  upon  the  throne, 
but  simply  claimed  to  be  restored  to  his  rights  and  dignities 
as  Duke  of  York,  he  was  joined  by  a  sufficient  force  to  enable 
him  to  cross  the  Trent.  As  he  marched  south  his  army 
speedily  swelled,  and  he  was  joined  by  many  great  lords. 

Warwick  had  summoned  Henry's  adherents  to  the  field,  and 
marched  north  to  meet  him.  When  the  armies  approached 
each  other,  the  Duke  of  Clarence,  who  commanded  a  portion 
of  Henry's  army,  went  over  with  his  whole  force  to  Edward, 
and  Warwick,  being  no  longer  in  a  position  to  give  battle,  was 


24  A  KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS  . 

obliged  to  draw  off  and  allow  Edward  to  march  unopposed 
towards  London.  The  citizens,  with  their  usual  fickleness, 
received  him  with  the  same  outburst  of  enthusiasm  with  which, 
five  months  before,  they  had  greeted  the  entry  of  Warwick. 
The  unfortunate  King  Henry  was  again  thrown  into  his  dun- 
geon in  the  Tower,  and  Edward  found  himself  once  more 
King  of  England. 

Sir  Thomas  Tresham,  as  soon  as  he  heard  of  the  landing  of 
Edward,  had  hastened  up  to  London.  In  his  uncertainty 
how  matters  would  go,  he  brought  his  wife  and  son  up  with 
him,  and  left  them  in  lodgings,  while  he  marched  north  with 
Warwick.  As  soon  as  the  defection  of  Clarence  opened  the 
road  to  London,  he  left  the  Earl,  promising  to  return  in  a 
few  days,  and  rode  to  town,  arriving  there  two  days  before 
Edward's  entry,  and,  purchasing  another  horse,  took  his  wife 
and  son  down  to  St.  Albans,  where  leaving  them,  he  rejoined 
Warwick.  In  a  few  days  the  latter  had  gathered  sufficient 
forces  to  enable  him  to  risk  the  fortunes  of  a  battle,  and,  march- 
ing south,  he  encamped  with  his  army  on  the  common  north 
of  Barnet.  Edward  had  come  out  to  meet  him,  and  the  two 
armies  slept  on  Easter  Eve  within  two  miles  of  each  other. 

Late  in  the  evening  Clarence  sent  a  messenger  to  the  Earl, 
offering  to  mediate,  but  the  offer  was  indignantly  refused  by 
Warwick. 

In  the  darkness,  neither  party  was  aware  of  the  other's 
precise  position.  Warwick  was  much  stronger  than  the  king 
in  artillery,  and  had  placed  it  on  his  right  wing.  The  king, 
in  his  ignorance  of  the  enemy's  position,  had  placed  his  troops 
considerably  more  to  the  right  than  those  of  Warwick's  army. 
The  latter,  believing  that  Edward's  line  was  facing  his,  kept 
up  a  heavy  cannonade  all  night  upon  where  he  supposed  Ed- 
ward's left  to  be — a  cannonade  which  was  thus  entirely  futile. 

In  the  morning  (April  i4th)  a  heavy  mist  covered  the 
country  and  prevented  either  force  from  seeing  the  other's 
dispositions.  Warwick  took  the  command  of  his  left  wing, 


THE    KING-MAKER  25 

having  with  him  the  Duke  of  Exeter.  Somerset  was  in  com- 
mand of  his  centre,  and  Montague  and  Oxford  of  his  right. 

Edward  placed  himself  in  the  centre  of  his  array,  the  Duke 
of  Gloucester  commanded  on  his  right,  and  Lord  Hastings  on 
his  left. 

Desirous,  from  his  inferiority  in  artillery,  to  fight  out  the 
battle  hand  to  hand,  Edward,  at  six  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
ordered  his  trumpets  to  blow,  and,  after  firing  a  few  shots, 
advanced  through  the  mist  to  attack  the  enemy.  His  miscon- 
ception as  to  Warwick's  position,  which  had  saved  his  troops 
from  the  effects  of  the  cannonade  during  the  night,  was  now 
disadvantageous  to  him,  for  the  Earl's  right  so  greatly  out- 
flanked his  left  that  when  they  came  into  contact  Hastings 
found  himself  nearly  surrounded  by  a  vastly  superior  force. 
His  wing  fought  valiantly,  but  was  at  length  broken  by  Ox- 
ford's superior  numbers,  and  driven  out  of  the  field.  The 
mist  prevented  the  rest  of  the  armies  from  knowing  what  had 
happened  on  the  king's  left.  Edward  himself  led  the  charge 
on  Warwick's  centre,  and  having  his  best  troops  under  his 
command,  pressed  forward  with  such  force  and  vehemence  that 
he  pierced  Somerset's  lines  and  threw  them  into  confusion. 

Just  as  Warwick's  right  had  outflanked  the  king's  left,  so 
his  own  left  was  outflanked  by  Gloucester.  Warwick's  troops 
fought  with  great  bravery,  and,  in  spite  of  the  disaster  to  his 
centre,  were  holding  their  ground  until  Oxford,  returning 
from  his  pursuit  of  the  king's  left,  came  back  through  the 
mist.  The  king's  emblem  was  a  sun,  that  of  Oxford  a  star 
with  streaming  raj's.  In  the  dim  light  this  was  mistaken  by 
Warwick's  men  for  the  king's  device,  and  believing  that 
Oxford  was  far  away  on  the  right,  they  received  him  with  a 
discharge  of  arrows.  This  was  at  once  returned,  and  a  con- 
flict took  place.  At  last  the  mistake  was  discovered,  but  the 
confusion  caused  was  irreparable.  Warwick  and  Oxford  each 
suspected  the  other  of  treachery,  and  the  king's  right  still 
pressing  on,  the  confusion  increased,  and  the  battle,  which 


26  A   KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

had  been  so  nearly  won  by  the  Earl,  soon  became  a  complete 
defeat,  and  by  ten  in  the  morning  Warwick's  army  was  in  full 
flight. 

Accounts  differ  as  to  the  strength  of  the  forces  engaged,  but 
it  is  probable  that  there  was  no  great  inequality,  and  that 
each  party  brought  some  fifteen  thousand  men  into  the  field. 
The  number  of  slain  is  also  very  uncertain,  some  historians 
placing  the  total  at  ten  thousand,  others  as  low  as  one  thou- 
sand ;  but  from  the  number  of  nobles  who  fell,  the  former 
computation  is  probably  nearest  to  the  truth.  Warwick,  his 
brother  Montague,  and  many  other  nobles  and  gentlemen, 
were  killed,  the  only  great  nobles  on  his  side  who  escaped 
being  the  Earls  of  Somerset  and  Oxford;  many  were  also 
killed  on  Edward's  side,  and  the  slaughter  among  the  ordi- 
nary fighting  men  was  greater  than  usual. 

Hitherto  in  the  battles  that  had  been  fought  during  the 
civil  war,  while  the  leaders  taken  on  the  field  were  frequently 
executed,  the  common  soldiers  were  permitted  to  return  to 
their  homes,  as  they  had  only  been  acting  under  the  orders  of 
their  feudal  superiors,  and  were  not  considered  responsible  for 
their  acts.  At  Barnet,  however,  Edward,  smarting  from  the 
humiliation  he  had  suffered  by  his  enforced  flight  from  Eng- 
land, owing  to  the  whole  country  declaring  for  his  rival, 
gave  orders  that  no  quarter  was  to  be  granted. 

It  was  an  anxious  day  at  St.  Albans,  where  many  ladies 
whose  husbands  were  with  Warwick's  army  had,  like  Dame 
Tresham,  taken  up  their  quarters.  It  was  but  a  few  miles 
from  the  field  of  battle.  In  the  event  of  victory  they  could 
at  once  join  their  husbands,  while  in  case  of  defeat  they 
could  take  refuge  in  the  sanctuary  of  the  abbey.  Messengers 
the  night  before  had  brought  the  news  that  the  battle  would 
begin  at  the  dawn  of  day,  and  with  intense  anxiety  they 
waited  for  the  news.  Dame  Tresham  and  her  son  attended 
early  mass  at  the  abbey,  and  had  returned  to  their  lodgings, 
when  Sir  Thomas  rode  up  at  full  speed.  His  armour  was 


SIR  "THOMAS  TRESHAM   BRINGS   HIS  WIFE  NEWS  OF  THE  LOST   BATTLE. 


THE   KING-MAKER  27 

dinted  and  his  plume  shorn  away  from  his  helmet.  As  he 
entered  the  house  he  was  met  by  his  wife,  who  had  run  down- 
stairs as  she  heard  his  horse  stop  at  the  door.  A  glance  at  his 
face  was  sufficient  to  tell  the  news. 

"  We  have  lost  the  day,"  he  said.  "  Warwick  and  Mon- 
tague are  both  killed.  All  is  lost  here  for  the  present. 
Which  will  you  do,  my  love,  ride  with  me  to  the  West, 
where  Queen  Margaret  will  speedily  land,  if  indeed  she  has 
not  landed  already,  or  take  sanctuary  here  with  the  boy?  " 

"  I  will  go  with  you,"  she  said.  "I  would  vastly  rather 
do  so." 

"I  will  tell  you  more  on  the  road,"  he  said.  "There  is 
no  time  to  be  lost  now." 

The  woman  of  the  house  was  called,  and  at  once  set  her  son 
to  saddle  the  other  horse  and  to  give  a  feed  to  that  of  the 
knight.  Dame  Tresham  busied  herself  with  packing  the  sad- 
dle-bags while  her  husband  partook  of  a  hasty  meal ;  and  ten 
minutes  after  his  arrival  they  set  off,  Gervaise  riding  behind  his 
father,  while  the  latter  led  the  horse  on  which  his  wife  "was 
mounted.  A  thick  mist  hung  over  the  country. 

"  This  mist  told  against  us  in  the  battle,  wife,  for  as  we 
advanced  our  forces  fell  into  confusion,  and  more  than  once 
friend  attacked  friend,  believing  that  he  was  an  enemy. 
However,  it  has  proved  an  advantage  to  us  now,  for  it  has 
enabled  great  numbers  to  escape  who  might  otherwise  have 
been  followed  and  cut  down.  I  was  very  fortunate.  I  had 
left  my  horse  at  a  little  farmhouse  two  miles  in  the  rear  of  our 
camp,  and  in  the  fog  had  but  small  hope  of  finding  it ;  but 
soon  after  leaving  the  battle-field,  I  came  upon  a  rustic  hurry- 
ing in  the  same  direction  as  myself,  and  upon  questioning  him 
it  turned  out  that  he  was  a  hind  on  the  very  farm  at  which  I 
had  left  the  horse.  He  had,  with  two  or  three  others,  stolen 
out  after  midnight  to  see  the  battle,  and  was  now  making  his 
way  home  again,  having  seen  indeed  but  little,  but  having 
learned  from  fugitives  that  we  had  been  defeated.  He  guided 


28  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE  CROSS 

me  to  the  farmhouse,  which  otherwise  I  should  assuredly  never 
have  reached.  His  master  was  favourable  to  our  party,  and 
let  the  man  take  one  of  the  cart-horses,  on  which  he  rode  as 
my  guide  until  he  had  placed  me  upon  the  high  road  to  St. 
Albans,  and  I  was  then  able  to  gallop  on  at  full  speed." 

"  And  Warwick  and  his  brother  Montague  are  both  killed  ?  " 

"Both.  The  great  Earl  will  make  and  unmake  no  more 
kings.  He  has  been  a  curse  to  England,  with  his  boundless 
ambition,  his  vast  possessions,  and  his  readiness  to  change 
sides  and  to  embroil  the  country  in  civil  war  for  purely  per- 
sonal ends.  The  great  nobles  are  a  curse  to  the  country, 
wife.  They  are,  it  is  true,  a  check  upon  kingly  ill-doing  and 
oppression  ;  but  were  they,  with  their  great  arrays  of  retainers 
and  feudal  followers,  out  of  the  way,  methinks  that  the  citi- 
zens and  yeomen  would  be  able  to  hold  their  own  against  any 
king." 

"  Was  the  battle  a  hard-fought  one  ?  " 

"  I  know  but  little  of  what  passed,  except  near  the  standard 
of  Warwick  himself.  There  the  fighting  was  fierce  indeed,  for 
it  was  against  the  Earl  that  the  king  finally  directed  his  chief 
onslaught.  Doubtless  he  was  actuated  both  by  a  deep  per- 
sonal resentment  against  the  Earl  for  the  part  he  had  played 
and  the  humiliation  he  had  inflicted  upon  him,  and  also  by 
the  knowledge  that  a  defeat  of  Warwick  personally  would  be 
the  heaviest  blow  that  he  could  inflict  upon  the  cause  of  Lan- 
caster." 

"  Then  do  you  think  the  cause  is  lost?  " 

"  I  say  not  that.  Pembroke  has  a  strong  force  in  Wales, 
and  if  the  West  rises,  and  Queen  Margaret  on  landing  can 
join  him,  we  may  yet  prevail ;  but  I  fear  that  the  news  of  the 
field  of  Barnet  will  deter  many  from  joining  us.  Men  may 
risk  lands  and  lives  for  a  cause  which  seems  to  offer  a  fair 
prospect  of  success,  but  they  can  hardly  be  blamed  for  holding 
back  when  they  see  that  the  chances  are  all  against  them. 
Moreover,  as  a  Frenchwoman,  it  cannot  be  denied  that  Mar- 


THE    BATTLE    OF    TEWKESBURY  29 

garet  has  never  been  popular  in  England,  and  her  arrival  here, 
aided  by  French  gold  and  surrounded  by  Frenchmen,  will  tell 
against  her  with  the  country  people.  I  went  as  far  as  I  could 
on  the  day  before  I  left  Amboise,  urging  her  on  no  account  to 
come  hither  until  matters  were  settled.  It  would  have  been 
infinitely  better  had  the  young  prince  come  alone,  and  landed 
in  the  West  without  a  single  follower.  The  people  would 
have  admired  his  trust  in  them,  and  would,  I  am  sure,  have 
gathered  strongly  round  his  banner.  However,  we  must  still 
hope  for  the  best.  Fortune  was  against  us  to-day  :  it  may  be 
with  us  next  time  we  give  battle.  And  with  parties  so  equally 
divided  throughout  the  country  a  signal  victory  would  bring 
such  vast  numbers  to  our  banners  that  Edward  would  again 
find  it  necessary  to  cross  the  seas. ' ' 


CHAPTER  II 

THE   BATTLE    OF   TEWKESBURY 

RIDING  fast,  Sir  Thomas  Tresham  crossed  the  Thames  at 
Reading  before  any  news  of  the  battle  of  Barnet  had 
arrived  there.  On  the  third  day  after  leaving  St.  Albans  he 
reached  Westbury,  and  there  heard  that  the  news  had  been  re- 
ceived of  the  queen's  landing  at  Plymouth  on  the  very  day  on 
which  her  friends  had  been  defeated  at  Barnet,  and  that  she  had 
already  been  joined  by  the  Duke  of  Somerset,  the  Earl  of 
Devon,  and  others,  and  that  Exeter  had  been  named  as  the 
point  of  rendezvous  for  her  friends.  As  the  Lancastrians  were 
in  the  majority  in  Wiltshire  and  Somerset,  there  was  no 
longer  any  fear  of  arrest  by  partisans  of  York,  and  after  resting 
for  a  day  Sir  Thomas  Tresham  rode  quietly  on  to  Exeter, 
where  the  queen  had  already  arrived. 

The  battle  of  Barnet  had  not,  in  reality,  greatly  weakened 


30  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

the  Lancastrian  cause.  The  Earl  of  Warwick  was  so  detested 
by  the  adherents  of  the  Red  Rose  that  comparatively  few  of 
them  had  joined  him,  and  the  fight  was  rather  between  the 
two  sections  of  Yorkists  than  between  York  and  Lancaster. 
The  Earl's  death  had  broken  up  his  party,  and  York  and 
Lancaster  were  now  face  to  face  with  each  other,  without  his 
disturbing  influence  on  either  side.  Among  those  who  had 
joined  the  queen  was  Tresham's  great  friend,  the  Grand  Prior 
of  St.  John's.  Sir  Thomas  took  up  his  lodgings  in  the  house 
where  he  had  established  himself. 

The  queen  was  greatly  pleased  at  the  arrival  of  Dame  Tresh- 
am,  and  at  her  earnest  request  the  latter  shared  her  apart- 
ments, while  Gervaise  remained  with  his  father. 

"  So  this  is  the  young  Knight  of  St.  John,"  the  prior  said, 
on  the  evening  of  the  arrival  of  Sir  Thomas.  "  I  would, 
Tresham,  that  I  were  at  present  at  Rhodes,  doing  battle  with 
the  infidels,  rather  than  engaged  in  this  warfare  against  Eng- 
lishmen and  fellow-Christians." 

"  I  can  well  understand  that,"  Sir  Thomas  said. 

"  I  could  not  hold  aloof  here,  Tresham.  The  vows  of  our 
Order  by  no  means  hinder  us  from  taking  part  in  the  affairs 
of  our  own  country.  The  rule  of  the  Order  is  indeed  against 
it,  but  the  rule  is  constantly  broken.  Were  it  otherwise  there 
could  be  no  commanderies  in  this  or  any  other  country  ;  we 
should  have,  on  entering  the  Order,  to  abandon  our  national- 
ity, and  to  form  part  of  one  community  in  the  East.  The 
Order  is  true  to  its  oaths.  We  cannot  defend  the  Holy 
Sepulchre,  for  that,  for  the  present,  is  hopelessly  lost ;  but  we 
can  and  do  wage  war  with  the  infidel.  For  this  funds  are  nec- 
essary as  well  as  swords,  and  our  commanderies  throughout 
Europe  supply  the  funds  by  which  the  struggle  is  maintained, 
and,  when  it  is  needed,  send  out  contingents  to  help  those 
fighting  in  the  East.  It  was  from  the  neglect  of  this  cardinal 
point  that  the  Templars  fell.  Their  commanderies  amassed 
wealth  and  wide  possessions,  but  unlike  us  the  knights  abstained 


THE    BATTLE    OF    TEWKESBURY  31 

altogether  from  fulfilling  their  vows,  and  ceased  to  resist  the 
infidel.  Therefore  they  were  suppressed,  and,  with  the  gen- 
eral approval  of  Europe,  a  portion  of  their  possessions  was 
handed  over  to  the  knights  of  St.  John.  However,  as  I  under- 
stand, it  is  your  wish  that  as  soon  as  the  boy  comes  of  age  to 
wield  arms  he  shall  go  to  Rhodes  and  become  an  active  member 
of  the  Order.  This  is  indeed  the  rule  with  all  neophytes,  but 
having  served  a  certain  time  they  are  then  permitted  to  return 
and  join  one  of  the  commanderies  in  their  native  countries. 

"  I  do  not  wish  that  for  Gervaise,"  his  father  said;  "at 
least,  I  wish  him  to  remain  at  Rhodes  until  all  the  civil 
troubles  are  absolutely  at  an  end  here.  My  life  has  been 
ruined  by  them.  Loving  retirement  and  quiet,  and  longing 
for  nothing  so  much  as  a  life  among  my  tenantary,  I  have  al- 
most from  a  boy  been  actively  engaged  in  warfare  or  have 
been  away  as  an  exile.  Here  every  one  of  gentle  blood  has 
been  more  or  less  mixed  up  in  these  civil  broils.  To  few  of  us 
does  it  personally  matter  whether  a  member  of  the  House  of 
York  or  Lancaster  sits  on  the  throne,  and  yet  we  have  been 
almost  compelled  to  take  sides  with  one  or  the  other ;  and 
now,  in  my  middle  age  I  am  on  the  eve  of  another  battle  in 
which  I  risk  my  life  and  fortune.  If  we  win  I  gain  naught 
but  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  young  Edward  made  King  of 
England.  If  we  lose  I  am  going  into  exile  again,  or  I  may 
leave  my  wife  a  widow,  and  my  child  penniless." 

"  It  is  too  true,  Tresham ;  and  as  I  am  as  likely  to  fall  as 
you  are,  the  child  might  be  left  without  a  protector  as  well  as 
fatherless.  However,  against  that  I  will  provide.  I  will  write 
a  letter  to  Peter  D'Aubusson,  who  is  the  real  governor  of 
Rhodes,  for  the  Grand  Master  Orsini  is  so  old  that  his  rule  is 
little  more  than  nominal.  At  his  death  D'Aubusson  is  certain 
to  be  elected  Grand  Master.  He  is  a  dear  friend  of  mine.  We 
entered  the  Order  the  same  year,  and  were  comrades  in  many 
a  fight  with  the  Moslems,  and  I  am  quite  sure  that  when  I  tell 
him  that  it  is  my  last  request  of  him,  he  will,  in  memory  of 


32  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

our  long  friendship,  appoint  your  son  as  one  of  the  Grand 
Master's  pages.  As  you  know,  no  one,  however  high  his 
rank,  is  accepted  as  a  novice  before  the  age  of  sixteen. 
After  a  year's  probation  he  is  received  into  the  body  of  the 
Order  as  a  professed  knight,  and  must  go  out  and  serve  for  a 
time  in  Rhodes.  After  three  years  of  active  service  he  must 
reside  two  more  at  the  convent,  and  can  then  be  made  a 
commander.  There  is  but  one  exception  to  the  rule — namely, 
that  the  pages  of  the  grand  master  are  entitled  to  the  privi- 
lege of  admission  at  the  age  of  twelve,  so  that  they  become 
professed  knights  at  thirteen.  Your  son  is  now  but  nine,  you 
say,  and  we  must  remember  that  D'Aubusson  is  not  yet  Grand 
Master,  and  Orsini  may  live  for  some  years  yet.  D'Aubusson, 
however,  can  doubtless  get  him  to  appoint  the  boy  as  one  of 
his  pages.  But,  in  any  case,  there  are  three  years  yet  to  be 
passed  before  he  can  go  out.  Doubtless  these  he  will  spend 
under  his  mother's  care;  but  as  it  is  as  well  to  provide 
against  everything,  I  will  furnish  your  dame  with  a  letter  to 
the  knight  who  will  probably  succeed  me  as  Grand  Prior  of 
the  English  langue,  asking  him  to  see  to  the  care  and  educa- 
tion of  the  boy  up  to  the  time  when  he  can  proceed  to 
Rhodes.  We  may  hope,  my  dear  Tresham,  that  there  will 
be  no  occasion  to  use  such  documents,  and  that  you  and  I 
may  both  be  able  personally  to  watch  over  his  career.  Still, 
it  is  as  well  to  take  every  precaution.  I  shall,  of  course,  give 
D'Aubusson  full  particulars  about  you,  your  vow,  and  your 
wishes. ' ' 

"I  thank  you  greatly,  old  friend,"  Sir  Thomas  said.  "It 
has  taken  a  load  off  my  mind.  I  shall  leave  him  here  with 
his  mother  when  we  march  forward,  and  bid  her,  if  ill  befalls 
me,  cross  again  to  France,  and  then  to  keep  Gervaise  with 
her  until  she  can  bring  herself  to  part  with  him.  She  has  her 
jewels  and  a  considerable  sum  of  money  which  I  accepted 
from  the  man  who  has  been  enjoying  my  estates  for  the  last 
five  years,  in  lieu  of  the  monies  that  he  had  received  during 


THE    BATTLE    OF    TEWKESBURY  33 

that  time.  Therefore,  she  will  not  lack  means  for  some  years 
to  come.  Besides,  Queen  Margaret  has  a  real  affection  for 
her,  and  will,  doubtless,  be  glad  to  have  her  with  her  again 
in  exile." 

"  When  I  am  old  enough,"  Gervaise  said,  suddenly  look- 
ing up  from  a  missal  of  the  Grand  Prior's  which  he  had  been 
examining,  "  I  will  chop  off  the  head  of  the  Duke  of  York, 
and  bring  mother  back  to  England." 

"  You  will  be  a  valiant  champion  no  doubt,  my  boy,"  the 
prior  said,  laughing.  "  But  that  is  just  what  your  father  does 
not  want.  Chop  off  the  heads  of  as  many  infidels  as  you  will, 
but  leave  Englishmen  alone,  be  they  dukes  or  commoners.  It 
is  a  far  more  glorious  career  to  be  aiding  to  defend  Europe 
against  the  Moslem  than  to  be  engaged  in  wars  with  your  own 
countrymen.  If  the  great  lords  will  fight,  let  them  fight  it 
out  themselves  without  our  aid ;  but  I  hope  that  long  before 
you  become  a  man  even  they  will  be  tired  of  these  perpetual 
broils,  and  that  some  agreement  may  be  arrived  at,  and  peace 
reign  in  this  unhappy  land." 

"  Besides,  Gervaise,"  his  father  added,  "you  must  bear  in 
mind  always  that  my  earnest  wish  and  hope  is  that  you  will 
become  a  champion  of  the  Cross.  I  took  a  solemn  vow  before 
you  were  born  that  if  a  son  were  granted  to  me  I  would  dedi- 
cate him  to  the  service  of  the  Cross,  and  if  I  am  taken  from 
you,  you  must  still  try  to  carry  that  oath  into  effect.  I  trust 
that,  at  any  rate  for  some  years  after  you  attain  manhood,  you 
will  expend  your  whole  strength  and  powers  in  the  defence  of 
Christianity,  and  as  a  worthy  knight  of  the  Order  of  St.  John. 
Too  many  of  the  knights,  after  serving  for  three  years  against 
the  infidels,  return  to  their  native  countries  and  pass  the  rest 
of  their  lives  in  slothful  ease  at  their  commanderies,  save  per- 
haps when  at  any  great  crisis  they  go  out  for  a  while  and  join 
in  the  struggle.  Such  is  not  the  life  I  should  wish  you  to  lead. 
At  the  death  of  your  mother  and  myself,  you  will  have  no 
family  ties  in  England — nothing  to  recall  you  here.  If  the 


34  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

House  of  York  succeeds  in  establishing  itself  firmly  on  the 
throne,  my  estates  will  be  forfeited.  Therefore,  regard  Rhodes 
as  your  permanent  home,  and  devote  your  life  to  the  Order. 
Beginning  so  young,  you  may  hope  to  distinguish  yourself — • 
to  gain  high  rank  in  it ;  but  remember  that  though  these  are 
my  wishes,  they  are  not  my  orders,  and  that  your  career  must 
be  in  your  own  hands." 

"  I  will  be  a  brave  knight,  father,"  the  boy  said  firmly. 

"  That  is  right,  my  boy.  Now  go  upstairs  to  your  bed ;  it 
is  already  late.  I  do  not  regret  my  vow,"  he  went  on,  after 
Gervaise  had  left  the  room,  "  though  I  regret  that  he  is  my 
only  son.  It  is  singular  that  men  should  care  about  what 
comes  after  them,  but  I  suppose  it  is  human  nature.  I  should 
have  liked  to  think  that  my  descendants  would  sit  in  the  old 
house,  and  that  men  of  my  race  and  name  would  long  own 
the  estates.  But  doubtless  it  is  all  for  the  best ;  for  at  least 
I  can  view  the  permanent  loss  of  my  estates,  in  case  the  York- 
ists triumph,  without  any  poignant  regret." 

"  Doubtless  it  is  for  the  best,  Tresham,  and  you  must  re- 
member that  things  may  not,  even  now,  turn  out  as  you  think. 
A  knight  who  has  done  a  brave  service  does  not  find  much 
difficulty  in  obtaining  from  the  Pope  a  dispensation  from  his 
vows.  Numbers  of  knights  have  so  left  the  Order  and  have 
married  and  perpetuated  their  name.  It  is  almost  a  necessity 
that  it  should  be  so,  for  otherwise  many  princes  and  barons 
would  object  to  their  sons  entering  the  Order.  Its  object  is  to 
keep  back  the  irruption  of  the  Moslems,  and  when  men  have 
done  their  share  of  hard  work  no  regret  need  be  felt  if  they 
desire  to  leave  the  Order.  Our  founder  had  no  thought  of 
covering  Europe  with  monasteries,  and  beyond  the  fact  that  it 
is  necessary  there  should  be  men  to  administer  our  manors  and 
estates,  I  see  no  reason  why  any  should  not  freely  leave  when 
they  reach  the  age  of  thirty  or  thirty-five,  and  indeed  believe 
that  it  would  strengthen  rather  than  weaken  us  were  the  vows, 
taken  at  the  age  of  seventeen,  to  be  for  fifteen  years  only." 


THE   BATTLE   OF    TEWKESBURY  35 

"  There  is  something  in  that,"  the  knight  said  thoughtfully. 
"However,  that  is  far  in  the  distance,  and  concerns  me  but 
little  ;  still,  I  agree  with  you,  for  I  see  no  advantage  in  men, 
after  their  time  of  usefulness  to  the  Order  is  past,  being  bound 
to  settle  down  to  a  monastic  life  if  by  nature  and  habit  un- 
suited  for  it.  There  are  some  spirits  who,  after  long  years  of 
warfare,  are  well  content  so  to  do,  but  there  are  assuredly  oth- 
ers to  whom  a  life  of  forced  inactivity,  after  a  youth  and  man- 
hood spent  in  action,  must  be  well-nigh  unendurable.  And 
now  tell  me  frankly  what  you  think  of  our  chances  here." 

"  Everything  depends  upon  time.  Promises  of  aid  have 
come  in  from  all  quarters,  and  if  Edward  delays  we  shall  soon 
be  at  the  head  of  an  overwhelming  force.  But  Edward,  with 
all  his  faults  and  vices,  is  an  able  and  energetic  leader,  and 
must  be  well  aware  that  if  he  is  to  strike  successfully  he  must 
strike  soon.  We  must  hope  that  he  will  not  be  able  to  do 
this.  He  cannot  tell  whether  we  intend  to  march  direct  to 
London,  or  to  join  Pembroke  in  Wales,  or  to  march  north, 
and  until  he  divines  our  purpose,  he  will  hardly  dare  to  move 
lest  we  should,  by  some  rapid  movement,  interpose  between 
himself  and  London.  If  he  gives  us  a  month,  our  success  is 
certain.  If  he  can  give  battle  in  a  fortnight,  no  one  can  say 
how  the  matter  will  end." 

Edward,  indeed,  was  losing  no  time.  He  stayed  but  a  few 
days  in  London  after  his  victory  at  Barnet,  and  on  the  igth 
of  April  left  for  Windsor,  ordering  all  his  forces  to  join  him 
there.  The  Lancastrians  had  endeavoured  to  puzzle  him  as  to 
their  intended  movements  by  sending  parties  out  in  various 
directions  ;  but  as  soon  as  he  had  gathered  a  force,  numerically 
small,  but  composed  of  veteran  soldiers,  he  hurried  west,  de- 
termined to  bring  on  a  battle  at  the  earliest  opportunity.  The 
queen's  advisers  determined  to  move  first  to  Wells,  as  from 
that  point  they  could  either  go  north  or  march  upon  London. 
Edward  entered  Abingdon  on  the  27th,  and  then,  finding  the 
Lancastrians  still  at  Wells,  marched  to  the  northwest,  by 


36  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

which  means  he  hoped  to  intercept  them  if  they  moved  north, 
while  he  would  be  able  to  fall  back  and  bar  their  road  to 
London  if  they  advanced  in  that  direction.  He  therefore 
moved  to  Cirencester,  and  waited  there  for  news  until  he 
learned  that  they  had  visited  Bristol  and  there  obtained  rein- 
forcements of  men  and  supplies  of  money  and  cannon,  and  had 
then  started  on  the  high  road  to  Gloucester. 

He  at  once  sent  off  messengers  to  the  son  of  Lord  Beau- 
champ,  who  held  the  Castle  of  Gloucester  for  him,  assuring 
him  that  he  was  following  at  full  speed,  and  would  come  to 
his  aid  forthwith.  The  messengers  arrived  in  time,  and  when 
the  queen,  after  a  long  march,  arrived  before  Gloucester,  she 
found  the  gates  shut  in  her  face.  The  governor  had  taken 
steps  to  prevent  her  numerous  adherents  in  the  town  from  ris- 
ing on  her  behalf,  and,  manning  the  walls,  refused  to  surren- 
der. Knowing  that  Edward  was  coming  up  rapidly,  it  was 
evident  that  there  was  no  time  to  spare  in  an  attempt  to  take 
the  town,  and  the  queen's  army  therefore  pressed  on,  without 
waiting,  to  Tewkesbury.  Once  across  the  river  they  would 
speedily  be  joined  by  the  Earl  of  Pembroke,  and  Edward 
would  be  forced  to  fall  back  at  once. 

By  the  time  they  reached  the  river,  however,  they  were 
thoroughly  exhausted.  They  had  marched  thirty-six  miles 
without  rest,  along  bad  roads  and  through  woods,  and  were 
unable  to  go  farther.  The  queen  urged  that  the  river  should 
be  crossed,  but  the  leaders  of  the  force  were  of  opinion  that 
it  was  better  to  halt.  Edward  would  be  able  to  follow  them 
across  the  river,  and  were  he  to  attack  them  when  in  disorder, 
and  still  further  wearied  by  the  operation  of  making  the  pas- 
sage, he  would  certainly  crush  them.  Moreover,  a  further 
retreat  would  discourage  the  soldiers,  and  as  a  battle  must  now 
be  fought,  it  was  better  to  fight  where  they  were,  especially  as 
they  could  choose  a  strong  position.  The  queen  gave  way, 
and  the  army  encamped  on  a  large  field  in  front  of  the  town. 
The  position  was  well  calculated  for  defence,  for  the  country 


THE    BATTLE    OF    TEWKESBURY  37 

around  was  so  broken  and  intercepted  with  lanes  and  deep 
hedges  and  ditches,  that  it  was  extremely  difficult  of  approach. 

In  the  evening  Edward  came  up,  his  men  having  also 
marched  some  si x-and -thirty  miles,  and  encamped  for  the 
night  within  three  miles  of  the  Lancastrian  position. 

The  queen's  troops  felt  confident  of  victory.  In  point  of 
numbers  they  were  superior  to  their  antagonists,  and  had  the 
advantage  of  a  strong  position.  Sir  Thomas  Tresham  had,  as 
he  proposed,  left  his  wife  and  son  at  Exeter  when  the  force 
marched  away. 

"  Do  not  be  despondent,  love,"  he  said  to  his  weeping 
wife,  as  he  bade  her  good-bye.  "  Everything  is  in  our  favour, 
and  there  is  a  good  hope  of  a  happy  termination  to  this  long 
struggle.  But,  win  or  lose,  be  assured  it  is  the  last  time  I  will 
draw  my  sword.  I  have  proved  my  fidelity  to  the  House  of 
Lancaster  ;  I  have  risked  life  and  fortune  in  their  cause ;  but  I 
feel  that  I  have  done  my  share  and  more,  and  whichever  way 
Providence  may  now  decide  the  issue  of  the  struggle,  I  will 
accept  it.  If  we  lose,  and  I  come  scathless  through  the  fight, 
I  will  ride  hither,  and  we  will  embark  at  Plymouth  for  France, 
and  there  live  quietly  until  the  time  comes  when  Edward  may 
feel  himself  seated  with  sufficient  firmness  on  the  throne  to 
forgive  past  offences  and  to  grant  an  amnesty  to  all  who  have 
fought  against  him.  In  any  other  case,  dear,  you  know  my 
wishes,  and  I  bid  you  carry  them  out  within  twenty-four  hours 
of  your  receiving  news  of  a  defeat,  without  waiting  longer  for 
my  appearance. ' ' 

As  soon  as  it  was  light,  Edward  advanced  to  the  attack. 
The  Duke  of  Gloucester  was  in  command  of  the  vanguard. 
He  himself  led  the  centre,  while  the  rear  was  commanded  by 
the  Marquis  of  Dorset  and  Lord  Hastings.  The  most  ad- 
vanced division  of  Lancastrians  was  commanded  by  the  Duke 
of  Somerset  and  his  brother.  The  Grand  Prior  of  the  Order 
of  St.  John  and  Lord  Wenlock  were  stationed  in  the  centre, 
the  Earl  of  Devon  with  the  reserve.  Refreshed  by  their  rest, 


38  A    KNIGHT   OF    THE   WHITE    CROSS 

the  queen's  troops  were  in  good  spirits.  While  awaiting  the 
attack,  she  and  the  prince  rode  among  the  ranks,  encouraging 
the  men  with  fiery  speeches,  and  promising  large  rewards  to 
all  in  case  of  victory. 

Gloucester  made  his  advance  with  great  difficulty.  The  ob- 
stacles to  his  progress  were  so  many  and  serious  that  his  di- 
vision was  brought  to  a  halt  before  it  came  into  contact  with 
the  defenders.  He  therefore  brought  up  his  artillery  and  opened 
a  heavy  cannonade  upon  Somerset's  position,  supporting  his 
guns  with  flights  of  arrows,  and  inflicting  such  heavy  loss  upon 
him  that  the  duke  felt  compelled  to  take  the  offensive. 

Having  foreseen  that  he  might  be  obliged  to  do  so,  he  had, 
early  in  the  morning,  carefully  examined  the  ground  in  front 
of  him,  and  had  found  some  lanes  by  which  he  could  make  a 
flank  attack  on  the  enemy.  Moving  his  force  down,  these 
lanes,  where  the  trees  and  hedges  completely  hid  his  advance 
from  the  Yorkists,  he  fell  suddenly  upon  Edward's  centre, 
which,  taken  by  surprise  at  the  unexpected  attack,  was  driven 
in  confusion  up  the  hill  behind  it.  Somerset  was  quick  to 
take  advantage  of  his  success,  and  wheeling  his  men  round  fell 
upon  the  Duke  of  Gloucester's  division,  and  was  equally  suc- 
cessful in  his  attack  upon  it.  Had  the  centre,  under  Lord 
Wenlock,  moved  forward  at  once  to  his  support,  the  victory 
would  have  been  assured ;  but  Wenlock  lay  inactive,  and 
Somerset  was  now  engaged  in  conflict  with  the  whole  of  Ed- 
ward's force.  But  even  under  these  circumstances  he  still 
gained  ground,  when  suddenly  the  whole  aspect  of  the  battle 
was  changed. 

Before  it  began  Edward  had  sent  two  hundred  spearmen  to 
watch  a  wood  near  the  defenders'  lines,  as  he  thought  that  the 
Lancastrians  might  place  a  force  there  to  take  him  in  flank  as 
he  attacked  their  front.  He  ordered  them,  if  they  found  the 
wood  unoccupied,  to  join  in  the  fight  as  opportunity  might 
offer.  The  wood  was  unoccupied,  and  the  spearmen,  seeing 
the  two  divisions  of  their  army  driven  backwards,  and  being 


THE    BATTLE   OF    TEWKESBURY  39 

thereby  cut  off  from  their  friends,  issued  from  the  wood  and, 
charging  down  in  a  body,  fell  suddenly  upon  Somerset's  rear. 

Astounded  and  confused  by  an  attack  from  such  a  quarter, 
and  believing  that  it  was  an  act  of  treachery  by  one  of  their 
own  commanders,  Somerset's  men,  who  had  hitherto  been 
fighting  with  the  greatest  bravery,  fell  into  confusion.  Ed- 
ward's quick  eye  soon  grasped  the  opportunity,  and  rallying 
his  troops  he  charged  impetuously  down  upon  the  Lancastrians, 
seconded  hotly  by  Gloucester  and  his  division. 

The  disorder  in  Somerset's  lines  speedily  grew  into  a  panic, 
and  the  division  broke  up  and  fled  through  the  lanes  to  the 
right  and  left.  Somerset,  after  in  vain  trying  to  stop  the 
panic,  rode  furiously  back  into  the  camp,  followed  by  his  prin- 
cipal officers,  and  riding  up  to  Lord  Wenlock  he  cleft  his  head 
in  two  with  a  battle-axe.  His  resentment,  although  justified 
by  the  inactivity  of  this  nobleman  at  such  a  crisis,  was  yet 
disastrous,  as  it  left  the  centre  without  a  leader,  and  threw  it 
into  a  state  of  disorganization,  as  many  must  have  supposed 
that  Somerset  had  turned  traitor  and  gone  over  to  the  enemy. 
Before  any  disposition  could  be  made,  Edward  and  Gloucester 
poured  their  forces  into  the  camp,  and  the  Lancastrians  at 
once  broke  and  fled.  Many  of  their  leaders  took  refuge  in  the 
church,  an  asylum  which  they  deemed  inviolable,  and  which 
the  Lancastrians  had  honourably  respected  in  their  hour  of 
triumph. 

Among  them  were  the  Duke  of  Somerset,  the  Grand  Prior 
of  the  Order  of  St.  John,  Sir  Humphrey  Audely,  Sir  Gervis 
of  Clifton,  Sir  William  Gainsby,  Sir  William  Gary,  Sir  Henry 
Rose,  Sir  Thomas  Tresham,  and  seven  esquires.  Margaret  of 
Anjou  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  victors.  As  to  the  fate  of  the 
young  prince,  accounts  differ.  Some  authorities  say  that  he 
was  overtaken  and  slain  on  the  field,  but  the  majority  relate 
that  he  was  captured  and  taken  before  Edward,  who  asked 
him,  "What  brought  you  to  England?"  On  his  replying 
boldly,  "  My  father's  crown  and  mine  own  inheritance," 


40  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

Edward  struck  him  in  the  mouth  with  his  gauntlet,  and  his  at- 
tendants, or  some  say  his  brothers,  at  once  despatched  the 
youth  with  their  swords. 

The  king,  with  Gloucester  and  Clarence,  then  went  to  the 
church  at  Tewkesbury,  where  the  knights  had  taken  refuge, 
burst  open  the  doors,  and  entered  it.  A  priest,  bearing  the 
holy  vessels,  threw  himself  before  the  king,  and  would  not 
move  until  he  promised  to  pardon  all  who  had  taken  sanctuary 
there.  The  king  then  retired,  and  trusting  in  the  royal 
word,  the  gentlemen  made  no  attempt  to  escape,  although  it 
is  said  that  they  could  easily  have  done  so.  Two  days  later  a 
party  of  soldiers  by  the  king's  orders  broke  into  the  church, 
dragged  them  from  the  foot  of  the  altar,  and  beheaded  them 
outside. 

The  news  of  the  issue  of  the  fatal  battle  of  Tewkesbury,  the 
capture  of  the  queen,  and  the  death  of  the  prince,  was  borne 
to  Exeter  by  fugitives  on  the  following  day.  Beyond  the  fact 
that  the  Earl  of  Devon  and  other  nobles  were  known  to  have 
been  killed,  and  Somerset  with  a  party  of  knights  had  taken 
sanctuary,  they  could  give  no  details  as  to  the  fate  of  in- 
dividuals. In  the  deepest  distress  at  the  utter  ruin  of  the 
cause,  and  in  ignorance  of  the  fate  of  her  husband,  who  she 
could  only  hope  was  one  of  those  who  had  gained  sanctuary, 
Dame  Tresham  prepared  for  flight.  This  accomplished,  she 
had  only  to  wait,  and  sit  in  tearless  anguish  at  the  window, 
listening  intently  whenever  a  horseman  rode  past. 

All  night  her  watch  continued.  Gervaise,  who  had  cried 
himself  to  sleep,  My  on  a  couch  beside  her.  Morning  dawned, 
and  she  then  knew  that  her  husband  would  not  come,  for  had 
he  escaped  from  the  field  he  would  long  ere  this  have  been 
with  her.  The  messenger  with  the  news  had  arrived  at  eight 
the  previous  morning,  and,  faithful  to  her  husband's  wishes, 
at  that  hour  she  ordered  the  horses  to  be  brought  round,  and, 
joining  a  party  of  gentlemen  who  were  also  making  for  the 
coast,  rode  with  them  to  Plymouth.  Arrangements  were  al 


THE    BATTLE    OF   TEWKESBURY  41 

once  made  with  the  captain  of  a  small  ship  in  the  port,  and 
two  days  later  they  landed  at  Honfleur,  where  Sir  Thomas  had 
enjoined  his  wife  to  wait  until  she  heard  from  him  or  obtained 
sure  news  of  his  fate.  A  week  after  her  arrival  the  news  was 
brought  by  other  fugitives  of  the  violation  of  the  sanctuary  by 
the  king,  and  the  murder  of  Somerset  and  the  gentlemen  with 
him,  of  whom  Sir  Thomas  Tresham  was  known  to  have  been 
one. 

The  blow  proved  fatal  to  Dame  Tresham.  She  had  gone 
through  many  trials  and  misfortunes,  and  had  ever  borne  them 
bravely,  but  the  loss  of  her  husband  completely  broke  her 
down.  Save  to  see  his  wishes  concerning  their  son  carried 
out,  she  had  no  longer  any  interest  in  life  or  any  wish  to  live. 
But  until  the  future  of  Gervaise  was  assured,  her  mission  was 
unfulfilled.  His  education  was  her  sole  care  ;  his  mornings 
were  spent  at  a  monastery,  where  the  monks  instructed  the 
sons  of  such  of  the  nobles  and  gentry  of  the  neighbourhood  as 
cared  that  they  should  be  able  to  read  and  write.  In  the 
afternoon  he  had  the  best  masters  in  the  town  in  military  exer- 
cises. His  evenings  he  spent  with  his  mother,  who  strove  to 
instil  in  him  the  virtues  of  patience,  mercy  to  the  vanquished, 
and  valour,  by  stories  of  the  great  characters  of  history.  She 
herself  spent  her  days  in  pious  exercises,  in  attending  the  ser- 
vices of  the  Church,  and  in  acts  of  charity  and  kindness  to 
her  poorer  neighbours.  But  her  strength  failed  rapidly,  and 
she  was  but  a  shadow  of  her  former  self  when,  two  years  and 
a  half  after  her  arrival  at  Honfleur,  she  felt  that  if  she  was 
herself  to  hand  Gervaise  over  to  the  Order  of  St.  John,  she 
must  no  longer  delay.  Accordingly  she  took  ship  to  London, 
and  landing  there  made  her  way  with  him  to  the  dwelling  of 
the  Order  at  Clerkenwell.  It  was  in  process  of  re-building,  for 
in  1381  it  had  been  first  plundered  and  then  burned  by  the 
insurgents  under  Wat  Tyler.  During  the  ninety  years  that 
had  elapsed  since  that  event  the  work  of  re-building  had  pro- 
ceeded steadily,  each  grand  prior  making  additions  to  the  pile 


42  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

which,  although  not  yet  fully  completed,  was  already  one  of 
the  grandest  and  stateliest  abodes  in  England. 

On  inquiring  for  the  grand  prior,  and  stating  that  she  had 
a  letter  of  importance  for  him,  Dame  Tresham  and  her  son 
were  shown  up  to  his  apartment,  and  on  entering  were  kindly 
and  courteously  received  by  him  when  informed  that  she  was 
the  widow  of  the  late  Sir  Thomas  Tresham. 

' '  I  am  the  bearer  of  a  letter  for  you,  given  into  my  hand 
by  my  husband's  dear  friend  your  predecessor,"  she  said, 
"a  few  days  before  his  murder  at  Tewkesbury.  It  relates  to 
my  son  here. ' ' 

The  grand  prior  opened  the  letter  and  read  it. 

"  Assuredly,  madam,  I  will  carry  out  the  wishes  here  ex- 
pressed," he  said.  "They  are,  that  I  should  forward  at 
once  the  letter  he  has  given  you  to  Sir  Peter  D'Aubusson, 
and  that  until  an  answer  is  received  from  him,  I  should  take 
care  of  the  boy  here,  and  see  that  he  is  instructed  in  all  that 
is  needful  for  a  future  knight  of  our  Order.  I  grieve  to  see 
that  you  yourself  are  looking  so  ill." 

"  My  course  is  well-nigh  run,"  she  said.  "  I  have,  me- 
thinks,  but  a  few  days  to  live.  I  am  thankful  that  it  has 
been  permitted  to  me  to  carry  out  my  husband's  wishes,  and 
to  place  my  boy  in  your  hands.  That  done,  my  work  on 
earth  is  finished,  and  glad  indeed  am  I  that  the  time  is  at 
hand  when  I  can  rejoin  my  dear  husband. ' ' 

"  We  have  a  building  here  where  we  can  lodge  ladies  in 
distress  or  need,  Dame  Tresham,  and  I  trust  that  you  will 
take  up  your  abode  there." 

"I  shall  indeed  be  thankful  to  do  so,"  she  replied.  "I 
know  no  one  in  London,  and  few  would  care  to  lodge  a  dy- 
ing woman." 

"  We  are  Hospitallers,"  the  grand  prior  said.  "  That  was 
our  sole  mission  when  we  were  first  founded,  and  before  we 
became  a  military  order,  and  it  is  still  a  part  of  our  sworn 
duty  to  aid  the  distressed." 


THE    BATTLE    OF   TEWKESBURY  43 

A  few  minutes  later  Dame  Tresham  was  conducted  to  a 
comfortable  apartment,  and  was  given  into  the  charge  of  a 
female  attendant.  The  next  day  she  had  another  interview 
with  the  grand  prior,  to  whom  she  handed  over  her  jewels 
and  remaining  money.  This  she  prayed  him  to  devote  to  the 
furnishing  of  the  necessary  outfit  for  Gervaise.  She  spent  the 
rest  of  the  day  in  the  church  of  the  hospital,  had  a  long  talk 
with  her  son  in  the  evening,  giving  him  her  last  charges  as  to 
his  future  life  and  conduct,  and  that  night,  as  if  she  had  now 
fulfilled  her  last  duty  on  earth,  she  passed  away,  and  was 
found  by  her  attendant  lying  with  a  look  of  joy  and  peace- 
fulness  on  her  dead  face. 

Gervaise' s  grief  was  for  a  time  excessive.  He  was  nearly 
twelve  years  old,  and  had  never  until  now  been  separated 
from  her  even  for  a  day.  She  had  often  spoken  to  him  of 
her  end  being  near,  but  until  the  blow  came  he  had  never 
quite  understood  that  it  could  be  so.  She  had,  on  the  night 
before  her  death,  told  him  that  he  must  not  grieve  overmuch 
for  her,  for  that  in  any  case  they  must  have  soon  been  sun. 
dered,  and  that  it  was  far  better  that  he  should  think  of  her 
as  at  rest,  and  happy,  than  as  leading  a  lonely  and  sorrowful 
life.  The  grand  prior,  however,  wisely  gave  him  but  little 
time  to  dwell  upon  his  loss,  but  as  soon  as  her  funeral  had 
taken  place,  handed  him  over  to  the  knights  who  had  the 
charge  of  the  novices  on  probation,  and  instructed  them  in 
their  military  exercises,  and  of  the  chaplain  who  taught  them 
such  learning  as  was  considered  requisite  for  a  knight  of  the 
Order. 

The  knights  were  surprised  at  the  proficiency  the  lad  had 
already  attained  in  the  use  of  his  weapons. 

"By  St.  Agatha,"  one  of  them  exclaimed,  after  the  con- 
clusion of  his  first  lesson,  "  you  have  had  good  teachers,  lad, 
and  have  availed  yourself  rarely  of  them.  If  you  go  on  like 
this  you  will  become  a  distinguished  knight  of  our  Order. 
With  a  few  more  years  to  strengthen  your  arms  I  warrant  me 


44  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE  CROSS 

you  will  beai  your  part  well  in  your  first  tussle  with  the  Mos- 
lem corsairs." 

It  fortunately  happened  that  a  party  of  knights  were  start- 
ing for  Rhodes  a  few  days  after  the  admission  of  Gervaise  to 
the  Hospital,  and  the  letter  to  Sir  Peter  D' Aubusson  was  com- 
mitted to  their  charge.  They  were  to  proceed  to  Bordeaux 
by  ship,  then  to  journey  by  land  to  Marseilles,  and  thence, 
being  joined  by  some  French  knights,  to  sail  direct  to  Rhodes. 
Two  months  later  an  answer  was  received.  D' Aubusson  wrote 
to  the  grand  prior  saying  that  he  would  gladly  carry  out  the 
last  wishes  of  his  dead  friend,  and  that  he  had  already  ob- 
tained from  the  grand  master  the  appointment  of  Gervaise 
Tresham  as  one  of  his  pages,  and  begged  that  he  might  be 
sent  out  with  the  next  party  of  knights  leaving  England.  It 
was  three  months  before  such  an  opportunity  occurred.  Dur- 
ing that  time  Gervaise  remained  at  the  house  of  St.  John's 
studying  diligently,  and  continuing  his  military  exercises. 
These  were  severe  ;  for  the  scions  of  noble  houses,  who  hoped 
some  day  to  distinguish  themselves  as  knights,  were  put 
through  many  gymnastic  exercises — were  taught  to  spring  on 
to  a  horse  when  clad  in  full  armour,  to  wield  heavy  battle- 
axes,  to  run  and  climb,  and  to  prepare  themselves  for  all  the 
possibilities  of  the  mode  of  fighting  of  the  day. 

Gervaise  gained  the  encomiums,  not  only  of  his  special  pre- 
ceptor, but  of  the  various  knights  in  the  house,  and  of  the 
grand  prior  himself,  both  for  his  strength  and  activity,  and 
for  the  earnestness  with  which  he  worked.  When  the  time 
approached  for  his  leaving  England,  the  grand  prior  ordered 
for  him  the  outfit  which  would  be  necessary  in  his  position  as 
a  page  of  the  grand  master.  The  dresses  were  numerous  and 
rich,  for  although  the  knights  of  St.  John  wore  over  their  ar- 
mour the  simple  mantle  of  their  order,  which  was  a  sleeveless 
garment  of  black  relieved  only  by  a  white  cross  on  the  chest, 
they  indulged  in  the  finest  and  most  costly  armour,  and  in  rich 
garments  beneath  their  black  mantles  when  not  in  armour. 


THE    GRAND    MASTER'S    PAGE  45 

"  I  am  well  pleased  with  you,  Gervaise,"  the  grand  prior 
said,  on  the  evening  before  he  was  to  leave,  "  and  I  see  in  you 
the  making  of  a  valiant  knight  of  the  Order.  Maintain  the 
same  spirit  you  have  shown  here  ;  be  obedient  and  reverent  to 
your  superiors ;  give  your  whole  mind  to  your  duties  ;  strive 
earnestly  during  the  three  or  four  years  that  your  pagedom 
will  last,  to  perfect  yourself  in  military  exercises,  that  when 
the  time  comes  for  you  to  buckle  on  armour  you  will  be  able 
to  bear  yourself  worthily.  Remember  that  you  will  have  to 
win  your  knighthood,  for  the  Order  does  not  bestow  this  hon- 
our, and  you  must  remain  a  professed  knight  until  you  receive 
it  at  the  hands  of  some  distinguished  warrior.  Ever  bear  in 
mind  that  you  are  a  soldier  of  the  Cross.  Avoid  luxury,  live 
simply  and  modestly  ;  be  not  led  away  by  others,  upon  whom 
their  vows  may  sit  but  lightly  ;  keep  ever  in  your  mind  that 
you  have  joined  the  Order  neither  to  gain  fame  nor  personal 
advantage,  but  simply  that  you  may  devote  the  strength  and 
the  intelligence  that  God  has  given  you  to  protect  Christen- 
dom from  the  advance  of  the  infidel.  I  shall  hear  of  you 
from  time  to  time  from  D'Aubusson,  and  feel  sure  that  the  ex- 
pectations I  have  formed  of  you  will  be  fulfilled. ' ' 


CHAPTER  III 

THE   GRAND    MASTER'S    PAGE 

THE  grand  prior  had,  in  accordance  with  Dame  Tresham's 
request,  sent  the  steward  of  the  house  to  one  of  the  prin- 
cipal jewellers  of  the  city  who,  as  the  Order  were  excellent 
customers,  paid  a  good  price  for  her  jewels.  After  the  pay- 
ment for  the  numerous  dresses  required  for  the  service  as  a 
page  to  the  grand  master,  the  grand  prior  handed  the  balance 
of  the  money  Dame  Tresham  had  brought  with  her,  and  that 


46  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE  WHITE   CROSS 

obtained  by  the  sale  of  her  jewels,  to  one  of  the  knights  under 
whose  charge  Gervaise  was  to  travel,  to  be  given  by  him  to 
D' Aubusson  for  the  necessities  of  Gervaise  as  a  page.  During 
their  term  of  service  the  pages  received  no  remuneration,  all 
their  expenses  being  paid  by  their  families.  Nevertheless, 
the  post  was  considered  so  honourable,  and  of  such  great  ad- 
vantage to  those  entering  the  Order,  that  the  appointments 
were  eagerly  sought  after. 

The  head  of  the  party  was  Sir  Guy  Redcar,  who  had  been 
a  commander  in  England,  but  who  was  now  relinquishing  that 
post  in  order  to  take  a  high  office  in  the  convent  at  the  Isl- 
and. With  him  were  four  lads  between  seventeen  and 
twenty  who  were  going  out  as  professed  knights,  having 
served  their  year  of  probation  as  novices  at  the  grand  priory. 
With  these  Gervaise  was  already  acquainted,  as  they  had 
lived,  studied,  and  performed  their  military  exercises  to- 
gether. The  three  eldest  of  these  Gervaise  liked  much,  but 
the  youngest  of  the  party,  Robert  Rivers,  a  relation  of  the 
queen,  had  always  shown  a  very  different  spirit  from  the 
others.  He  was  jealous  that  a  member  of  one  of  the  defeated 
and  disinherited  Lancastrian  families  should  obtain  a  post  of 
such  honour  and  advantage  as  that  of  page  to  the  grand  mas- 
ter, and  that  thus,  although  five  years  younger,  Gervaise  should 
enter  the  Order  on  an  equality  with  him. 

In  point  of  strength  and  stature  he  was,  of  course,  greatly 
superior  to  Gervaise ;  but  he  had  been  spoilt  from  his  child- 
hood, was  averse  to  exercise,  and  dull  at  learning,  and  while 
Gervaise  was  frequently  commended  by  his  instructors,  he 
himself  was  constantly  reproved,  and  it  had  been  more  than 
once  a  question  whether  he  should  be  received  as  a  professed 
knight  at  the  termination  of  his  year  of  novitiate.  Thus, 
while  the  other  lads  treated  Gervaise  kindly,  and  indeed  made 
rather  a  pet  of  him,  Robert  Rivers  ignored  him  as  much  as 
possible,  and  if  obliged  to  speak  to  him  did  so  with  a  pointed 
rudeness  that  more  than  once  brought  upon  him  a  sharp  re- 


THE   GRAND    MASTER'S    PAGE  47 

proof  from  his  companions.  Gervaise  himself  was  but  little 
affected  by  Robert's  manner.  He  was  of  an  exceptionally 
good-tempered  nature,  and,  indeed,  was  so  occupied  with  his 
work  and  so  anxious  to  satisfy  his  teachers,  that  Robert's  ill- 
humour  passed  almost  unnoticed. 

The  journey  was  performed  without  incident.  During  their 
passage  across  the  south  of  France,  Gervaise's  perfect  knowl- 
edge of  the  language  gained  for  him  a  great  advantage  over 
his  companions,  and  enabled  him  to  be  of  much  use  to  Sir 
Guy.  They  had  fine  weather  during  their  passage  up  the 
Mediterranean,  and  on  the  way  their  leader  gave  them  their 
first  lessons  in  the  management  and  discipline  of  a  ship. 

"  You  will  be  nearly  as  much  at  sea  as  you  are  on  land  for 
the  five  years  you  must  stay  at  the  convent,"  he  said;  "and 
it  is  essential  to  the  education  of  a  knight  of  our  Order  to 
know  all  things  connected  with  the  management  of  a  ship, 
even  to  its  building.  We  construct  our  own  galleys  at  Rhodes, 
using,  of  course,  the  labour  of  slaves,  but  under  our  own  super- 
intendence ;  and  it  is  even  more  essential  to  us  to  know  how 
to  fight  on  sea  than  on  land.  There  is,  too,  you  see,  a  rivalry 
among  ourselves,  for  each  langue  has  its  duties,  and  each 
strives  to  perform  more  gallant  deeds  and  to  bring  in  more 
rich  prizes  than  the  others.  We  of  England  are  among  the 
smallest  of  the  langues,  and  yet  methinks  we  do  a  fair  portion 
of  the  work,  and  gain  fully  our  share  of  honour.  There  is  no 
fear  of  your  having  much  time  on  your  hands,  for  it  is  quite 
certain  that  there  will  soon  be  open  war  between  Mahomet 
and  the  Order.  In  spite  of  the  nominal  truce,  constant  skir- 
mishes are  taking  place,  so  that,  in  addition  to  our  fights  with 
pirates,  we  have  sometimes  encounters  with  the  sultan's  gal- 
leys. 

"  Seven  years  ago,  a  number  of  our  Order  took  part  in 
the  defence  of  Lesbos,  and  lost  their  lives  at  its  capture,  and 
we  have  sure  information  that  Mahomet  is  preparing  for  an  at- 
tack on  the  Island.  No  doubt  he  thinks  it  will  be  an  easy 


48  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CRO.SS 

conquest,  for  in  '57  he  succeeded  in  landing  eighteen  thou- 
sand men  on  the  Island,  and  in  ravaging  a  large  district,  car- 
rying off  much  booty.  Since  then,  however,  the  defences  of 
Rhodes  have  been  greatly  strengthened.  Zacosta,  our  last 
grand  master,  laboured  diligently  to  increase  the  fortifications, 
and,  specially,  built  on  one  side  of  the  entrance  to  the  harbour 
a  strong  tower,  called  Fort  St.  Nicholas.  Orsini  has  carried 
on  the  works,  which  have  been  directed  by  D'Aubusson,  who 
is  captain -general  of  the  forces  of  the  Island,  and  who  has  deep- 
ened the  ditches  and  built  a  wall  on  the  sea  front  of  the  town 
six  hundred  feet  in  length  and  twenty  feet  in  height,  money 
being  found  by  the  grand  master  from  his  private  purse. 

"  At  present  we  are  not  sure  whether  the  great  armament 
that  Mahomet  is  preparing  is  intended  for  the  capture  of 
Negropont,  which  belongs  to  Venice,  or  of  Rhodes.  Unfort- 
unately Venice  and  Rhodes  are  not  good  friends.  In  the 
course  of  our  war  with  Egypt  in  '58  we  captured  from  some 
Venetian  vessels,  in  which  they  were  travelling,  several  Egyp- 
tian merchants  with  a  great  store  of  goods.  The  Venetians 
protested  that  as  the  ships  were  theirs  we  had  no  right  to  in- 
terfere with  our  enemies  who  were  travelling  in  them,  and, 
without  giving  time  for  the  question  to  be  discussed,  at  once 
attacked  our  galleys,  and  sent  a  fleet  against  Rhodes.  They 
landed  on  the  Island,  and  not  only  pillaged  the  district  of 
Halki,  but,  a  number  of  natives  having  sought  shelter  in  a 
cave,  the  Venetians  blocked  up  the  entrance  with  brushwood, 
set  it  on  fire,  and  suffocated  them  all. 

"  Shortly  afterwards,  another  and  larger  fleet  appeared  off 
Rhodes,  and  demanded  the  restitution  of  the  Egyptians  and 
their  merchandise.  There  was  a  great  division  of  opinion  in 
the  council-;  but,  seeing  the  great  danger  that  threatened  us 
both  from  the  Turks  at  Constantinople  and  the  Venetians,  and 
that  it  was  madness  at  such  a  time  to  engage  in  war  with  a 
Christian  power,  the  grand  master  persuaded  the  council  to 
accede  to  their  request.  There  has  never  been  any  friendly 


THE    GRAND    MASTER'S    PAGE  49 

feeling  between  Venice  and  ourselves  since  that  time.  Still, 
I  trust  that  our  common  danger  will  re-unite  us,  and  that 
whether  Negropont  or  Rhodes  is  attacked  by  tlie  Moslems,  we 
shall  render  loyal  aid  to  each  other." 

There  was  great  excitement  among  Gervaise  and  his  com- 
panions when  it  was  announced  that  Rhodes  was  in  sight,  and 
as  they  approached  the  town  they  gazed  with  admiration  at 
the  castle  with  its  stately  buildings,  the  palace  of  the  grand 
master  and  the  Hospital  of  St.  John,  rising  above  the  lower 
town,  the  massive  walls  strengthened  by  projecting  bastions, 
and  the  fortifications  of  the  ports.  Of  these  there  were  two, 
with  separate  entrances,  divided  from  each  other  by  a  narrow 
tongue  of  land.  At  its  extremity  stood  Fort  St.  Nicholas, 
which  was  connected  by  a  strong  wall  running  along  the 
promontory  to  the  town.  The  inner  port,  as  it  was  called, 
was  of  greater  importance,  as  it  adjoined  the  town  itself.  It 
was  defended  in  the  first  place  by  Fort  St.  Nicholas,  and  at 
the  inner  entrance  stood  the  towers  of  St.  John  and  St. 
Michael,  one  on  either  side.  Into  this  the  vessel  was  steered. 
There  were  many  craft  lying  there,  among  them  eight  or  ten 
of  the  galleys  of  the  Order. 

"We  will  go  first  to  the  house  of  our  langue"  Sir  Guy 
said,  "  and  tell  them  to  send  down  slaves  to  fetch  up  our  bag- 
gage ;  then  I  will  take  you,  Gervaise,  to  Sir  Peter  D'Aubus- 
son,  and  hand  you  over  to  his  care." 

On  landing,  Gervaise  was  surprised  at  the  number  of  slaves 
who  were  labouring  at  the  public  works,  and  who  formed  no 
small  proportion  of  the  population  in  the  streets.  Their  con- 
dition was  pitiable.  They  were,  of  course,  enemies  of  Chris- 
tianity, and  numbers  of  them  had  been  pirates  ;  but  he  could 
not  help  pitying  their  condition  as  they  worked  in  the  full 
heat  of  the  sun  under  the  vigilant  eyes  of  numbers  of  over- 
seers, who  carried  heavy  whips,  in  addition  to  their  arms. 
Their  progress  to  the  upper  city  was  slow,  for  on  their  way 
they  met  many  knights,  of  whom  several  were  acquainted 


50  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

with  Sir  Guy  ;  and  each,  after  greeting  him,  demanded  the 
latest  news  from  England,  and  in  return  gave  him  particulars 
of  the  state  of  things  at  Rhodes. 

At  last  they  arrived  at  the  house  of  the  English  langue. 
The  Order  was  divided  into  langues  or  nationalities.  Of 
these  there  were  eight — Provence,  Auvergne,  France,  Italy, 
Germany,  England,  Aragon,  and  Castile  and  Portugal.  The 
French  element  was  by  far  the  strongest.  The  Order  had 
been  founded  in  that  country,  and  as  it  possessed  no  less  than 
three  langues,  and  held  the  greater  part  of  the  high  official 
positions  in  the  Order,  it  was  only  kept  in  check  by  the  other 
langues  acting  together  to  demand  their  fair  share  of  dignities. 
The  grand  master's  authority  was  considerable,  but  it  was 
checked  by  the  council,  which  was  composed  of  the  bailiffs 
and  knights  of  the  highest  order,  known  as  Grand  Crosses. 
Each  langue  had  its  bailiff  elected  by  itself;  these  resided 
constantly  at  Rhodes.  Each  of  these  bailiffs  held  a  high 
office ;  thus  the  Bailiff  of  Provence  was  always  the  grand 
commander  of  the  Order.  He  controlled  the  expenditure, 
superintended  the  stores,  and  was  governor  of  the  arsenal. 
The  Bailiff  of  Auvergne  was  the  commander-in-chief  of  all  the 
forces,  army  and  navy.  The  Bailiff  of  France  was  the  grand 
hospitaller,  with  the  supreme  direction  of  the  hospitals  and 
infirmaries  of  the  Order,  a  hospital  in  those  days  signifying  a 
guest-house.  The  Bailiff  of  Italy  was  the  grand  admiral,  and 
the  Bailiff  of  England  was  chief  of  the  light  cavalry.  Thus 
the  difficulties  and  jealousies  that  would  have  arisen  at  every 
vacancy  were  avoided. 

In  the  early  days  of  the  Order,  when  Jerusalem  was  in  the 
hands  of  the  Christians,  the  care  of  the  hospitals  was  its  chief 
and  most  important  function.  Innumerable  pilgrims  visited 
Jerusalem,  and  these  were  entertained  at  the  immense  guest- 
house of  the  Order.  But  with  the  loss  of  Jerusalem  and  the 
expulsion  of  the  Christians  from  Palestine,  that  function  had 
become  of  very  secondary  importance,  although  there  was  still 


THE   GRAND    MASTER'S   PAGE  51 

a  guest-house  and  infirmary  at  Rhodes,  where  strangers  and  the 
sick  were  carefully  attended  by  the  knights.  No  longer  did 
these  ride  out  to  battle  on  their  war-horses.  It  was  on  the  sea 
that  the  foe  was  to  be  met,  and  the  knights  were  now  sailors 
rather  than  soldiers.  They  dwelt  at  the  houses  of  their  re- 
spective langues  ;  here  they  ate  at  a  common  table,  which  was 
supplied  by  the  bailiff,  who  drew  rations  for  each  knight,  and 
received,  in  addition,  a  yearly  sum  for  the  supply  of  such  lux- 
uries as  were  not  included  in  the  rations.  The  average  num- 
ber of  knights  residing  in  each  of  these  langues  averaged  from 
a  hundred  to  a  hundred  and  fifty. 

It  was  not  until  some  hours  after  his  arrival  that  Sir  Guy 
could  find  time  to  take  Gervaise  across  to  the  house  of  the 
langue  of  Auvergne,  to  which  D'Aubusson  belonged.  It  was 
a  larger  and  more  stately  pile  than  that  of  the  English  langue, 
but  the  arrangements  were  similar  in  all  these  buildings.  In 
the  English  house  Gervaise  had  not  felt  strange,  as  he  had  the 
companionship  of  his  fellow-voyagers ;  but  as  he  followed  Sir 
Guy  through  the  spacious  halls  of  the  langue  of  Auvergne, 
where  no  familiar  face  met  his,  he  felt  more  lonely  than  he 
had  done  since  he  entered  the  house  at  Clerkenwell. 

On  sending  in  his  name  Sir  Guy  was  at  once  conducted 
to  the  chamber  occupied  by  D'Aubusson.  The  knight  was 
seated  at  his  table,  examining  some  plans.  The  room  was  fur- 
nished with  monastic  simplicity,  save  that  the  walls  were  hung 
with  rich  silks  and  curtains  captured  from  Turkish  galleys. 

"Welcome  back  to  us,  Sir  Guy,"  D'Aubusson  said,  rising, 
and  warmly  shaking  his  visitor's  hand.  "  I  have  been  look- 
ing for  your  coming,  for  we  need  men  with  clear  heads.  Of 
strong  arms  and  valiant  spirits  we  have  no  lack ;  but  men  of 
judgment  and  discretion,  who  can  be  trusted  to  look  at  mat- 
ters calmly  and  not  to  be  carried  away  by  passion,  are  wel- 
come indeed  to  us.  I  was  expecting  you  about  this  time,  and 
when  I  heard  that  a  ship  had  arrived  from  Marseilles  I  made 
inquiries,  and  was  glad  to  find  that  you  were  on  board." 


52  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  I  am  heartily  glad  to  be  back,  D'Aubusson ;  I  am  sick  of 
the  dull  life  of  a  commandery,  and  rejoice  at  the  prospect  of 
stirring  times  again.  This  lad  is  young  Tresham,  who  has 
come  out  in  my  charge,  and  for  whom  you  have  been  good 
enough  to  obtain  the  post  of  page  to  the  grand  master." 

"  And  no  slight  business  was  it  to  do  so,"  D'Aubusson  said, 
with  a  smile.  "It  happened  there  was  a  vacancy  when  the 
letter  concerning  him  arrived,  and  had  it  been  one  of  the 
highest  offices  in  the  Order  there  could  not  have  been  a 
keener  contention  for  it.  Every  bailiff  had  his  candidate 
ready;  but  I  seldom  ask  for  anything  for  members  of  my 
langue,  and  when  I  told  the  other  baliffs  that  it  was  to  me  a 
matter  of  honour  to  carry  out  the  last  request  of  my  dead 
friend,  they  all  gave  way.  You  see,  I  am  placed  in  a  position 
of  some  little  difficulty.  The  grand  master  is  so  enfeebled 
and  crippled  that  he  leaves  matters  almost  entirely  in  my 
hands,  and  it  would  be  an  abuse  of  my  position,  and  would 
excite  no  little  jealousy,  were  I  to  use  the  power  I  possess  to 
nominate  friends  of  my  own  to  appointments.  It  is  only  by 
the  most  rigid  impartiality,  and  by  dividing  as  fairly  as  possi- 
ble all  offices  between  the  eight  langues,  that  all  continue  to 
give  me  their  support.  As  you  know,  we  have  had  great  dif- 
ficulties and  heartburnings  here ;  but  happily  they  have  to  a 
great  extent  been  set  at  rest  by  forming  a  new  langue  of  Cas- 
tile and  Portugal  out  of  that  of  Aragon.  This  has  given  one 
more  vote  to  the  smaller  langues,  and  has  so  balanced  the 
power  that  of  Jate  the  jealousies  between  us  have  greatly  sub- 
sided, and  all  are  working  well  together  in  face  of  the  common 
danger.  Well,  young  sir,  and  how  like  you  the  prospect  of 
your  pageship?  " 

"I  like  it  greatly,  sir,  but  shall  like  still  more  the  time 
when  I  can  buckle  on  armour  and  take  a  share  of  the  fighting 
with  the  infidels.  I  would  fain,  sir,  offer  to  you  my  deep  and 
humble  thanks  for  the  great  kindness  you  have  shown  me  in 
procuring  me  the  appointment  of  page  to  the  grand  master. ' ' 


THE   GRAND    MASTER'S    PAGE  53 

The  knight  smiled  kindly.  "  There  are  the  less  thanks  due, 
lad,  inasmuch  as  I  did  it  not  for  you,  but  for  the  dear  friend 
who  wrote  to  me  on  your  behalf.  However,  I  trust  that  you 
will  do  credit  to  my  nomination  by  your  conduct  here." 

"There  is  a  letter  from  our  grand  prior  which  I  have 
brought  to  you,"  Sir  Guy  said.  "  He  commended  the  lad  to 
me  warmly,  and  seems  to  be  greatly  pleased  with  his  conduct." 

D'Aubusson  cut  the  silken  string  that  bound  the  missive  to- 
gether, and  read  the  letter. 

"  He  does  indeed  speak  warmly,"  he  said,  as  he  laid  it  down 
on  the  table.  "  He  tells  me  that  the  lad,  young  as  he  was, 
had  been  well  trained  when  he  came,  and  that  he  worked  with 
great  diligence  during  the  five  months  he  was  in  the  House, 
and  displayed  such  skill  and  strength  for  his  age,  as  to  surprise 
his  preceptors,  who  prophesied  that  he  would  turn  out  a  stout 
swordsman,  and  would  be  a  credit  to  the  Order." 

"  He  is  well  furnished  with  garments  both  for  ordinary  and 
state  occasions,"  Sir  Guy  said ;  "  and  in  this  packet  are  some 
sixty  gold  crowns,  which  are  the  last  remains  of  his  patrimony, 
and  which  I  was  to  hand  to  you  in  order  to  pay  the  necessary 
expenses  during  his  pageship." 

"  He  could  have  done  without  that,"  D'Aubusson  said. 
' '  Recommended  to  me  as  he  is,  I  would  have  seen  that  he 
lacked  nothing,  but  was  provided  with  all  necessaries  for  his 
position.  I  will  in  the  future  take  care  that  in  all  things  he 
is  on  a  par  with  his  companions."  He  touched  a  bell  on  the 
table,  and  a  servitor  entered. 

"  Tell  Richard  de  Deauville  to  come  here,"  he  said. 

A  minute  later  the  hangings  at  the  door  were  pushed  aside, 
and  a  lad  about  a  year  older  than  Gervaise  appeared,  and, 
bowing  deeply  to  the  knight,  stood  in  a  respectful  attitude, 
awaiting  his  orders. 

"  Deauville,  take  this  youth,  Gervaise  Tresham  to  your  room. 
He  is  appointed  one  of  the  pages  of  the  grand  master.  He  is 
English,  but  he  speaks  French  as  well  as  you  do,  having  lived 


54  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

in  France  for  some  years.  Take  him  to  your  apartment  and 
treat  him  kindly  and  well,  seeing  that  he  is  a  stranger  and 
new  to  all  here.  To-morrow  he  will  go  to  the  palace. ' ' 

Gervaise  bowed  deeply  to  the  two  knights,  and  then  fol- 
lowed the  page. 

11 1  suppose  you  arrived  in  that  ship  which  came  in  to-day," 
the  latter  said,  as  soon  as  they  had  left  the  room.  "  You  are 
in  luck  indeed  to  have  obtained  a  pageship  at  the  grand  mas- 
ter's. You  begin  to  count  your  time  at  once,  while  we  do  not 
begin  to  count  ours  until  we  are  seventeen.  Still,  good  luck 
may  befall  us  yet,  for  if  the  grand  master  dies,  Sir  Peter  is 
sure  to  be  chosen  to  succeed  him.  Then,  you  see,  we  too 
shall  be  pages  of  the  grand  master. ' ' 

"  How  many  are  there  of  you  ?  " 

"  Only  De  Lille  and  myself.  Of  course  D'Aubusson  will 
take  on  the  grand  master's  present  pages ;  but  as  there  are  five 
vacancies  on  an  average  every  year,  he  will  be  able  to  find 
room  for  us  among  the  number. ' ' 

"Why,  how  many  pages  has  the  grand  master?"  Ger- 
vaise asked,  in  surprise. 

"  Sixteen  of  them,  so  you  may  guess  the  duties  are  easy 
enough,  as  only  two  are  generally  employed,  except,  of  course 
on  solemn  occasions." 

"  Are  there  any  other  English  besides  myself?  " 

The  boy  shook  his  head.  "  There  are  eight  belonging  to 
the  French  langues ;  the  others  are  Spaniards,  Italians,  or 
Germans.  There,  this  is  our  room  and  this  is  De  Lille.  De 
Lille,  this  is  the  grand  master's  new  page,  Master  Gervaise 
Tresham,  and  our  lord  says  we  are  to  treat  him  kindly  and  en- 
tertain him  well  until  to-morrow,  when  he  will  go  to  the  palace. 
He  speaks  our  language,  and  has  been  some  years  in  France." 

"  How  came  you  to  be  there  ?  "   De  Lille  asked  Gervaise. 

"  My  father  was  a  Lancastrian,  and  my  mother  a  great 
friend  of  our  Queen  Margaret  of  Anjou,  and  they  were  with 
her  all  the  time  she  was  in  exile." 


THE  GRAND  MASTER'S  PAGE  65 

"How  quarrelsome  you  English  are!"  De  Lille  said. 
"  You  seem  to  be  always  fighting  among  yourselves." 

"  I  don't  think,"  Gervaise  said,  with  a  smile,  "  there  is  any 
love  lost  between  Louis  of  France  and  the  Duke  of  Burgundy, 
to  say  nothing  of  other  great  lords." 

' '  No ;  you  are  right  there.  But  though  we  talk  a  great  deal 
about  fighting,  it  is  only  occasionally  that  we  engage  in  it." 

The  pages'  room  was  a  small  one.  It  contained  two  pal- 
lets, which  served  as  seats  by  day,  and  two  wooden  chests, 
in  which  they  kept  their  clothes. 

Their  conversation  was  interrupted  by  the  ringing  of  a  bell. 

"  That  is  supper,"  De  Lille  said,  jumping  up.  "  We  will 
leave  you  here  while  we  go  down  to  stand  behind  our  lord's  chair. 
When  the  meal  is  over  we  will  bring  a  pasty  or  something  else 
good,  and  a  measure  of  wine,  and  have  our  supper  together  up 
here ;  and  we  will  tell  the  servitors  to  bring  up  another  pallet 
for  you.  Of  course,  you  can  go  down  with  us  if  you  like." 

"  Thank  you,  I  would  much  rather  stay  here.  Every  one 
would  be  strange  to  me,  and  having  nothing  to  do  I  should 
feel  in  the  way." 

The  boys  nodded,  and  taking  their  caps  ran  off,  while  Ger- 
vaise, tired  by  the  excitement  of  the  day,  lay  down  on  the 
bed  which  a  servant  brought  up  a  few  minutes  after  they  had 
left  him,  and  slept  soundly  until  their  return. 

"  I  think  I  have  been  asleep,"  he  said,  starting  up  when 
they  entered  the  room  again. 

"You  look  as  if  you  had,  anyhow,"  De  Lille  laughed. 
"  It  was  the  best  thing  you  could  do.  We  have  brought  up 
supper.  We  generally  sit  down  and  eat  after  the  knights 
have  done,  but  this  is  much  better,  as  you  are  here."  They 
sat  down  on  the  beds,  carved  the  pasty  with  their  daggers, 
and  after  they  had  finished  Gervaise  gladly  accepted  the  pro- 
posal of  the  others  to  take  a  walk  round  the  walls. 

They  started  from  the  corner  of  the  castle  looking  down 
upon  the  spit  of  land  dividing  the  two  ports. 


66  A  KKIGHT  OP  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

"  You  see,"  De  Lille  said,  "  there  is  a  row  of  small  islands 
across  the  mouth  of  the  outer  port,  and  the  guns  of  St.  Nicho- 
las, and  those  on  this  wall,  would  prevent  any  hostile  fleet 
from  entering." 

"  I  hardly  see  what  use  that  port  is,  for  it  lies  altogether 
outside  the  town,  and  vessels  could  not  unload  there. ' ' 

"  No.  Still,  it  forms  a  useful  place  of  refuge.  In  case  a 
great  fleet  came  to  attack  us,  our  galleys  would  lay  up  in  the 
inner  port,  which  would  be  cleared  of  all  the  merchant  craft, 
as  these  would  hamper  the  defence  ;  they  would,  therefore,  be 
sent  round  into  the  outer  port,  where  they  would  be  safe  from 
any  attack  by  sea,  although  they  would  doubtless  be  burnt  did 
an  army  besiege  the  town." 

Passing  along  the  walls  of  the  grand  master's  palace,  which 
was  a  strongly  fortified  building,  and  formed  a  citadel  that 
could  be  defended  after  the  lower  town  and  the  rest  of  the 
castle  had  been  taken,  they  came  to  the  western  angle  of  the 
fortifications. 

"  You  must  know  that  each  langue  has  charge  of  a  separate 
part  of  the  wall.  From  the  foot  of  the  mole  of  St.  Nicholas  to 
the  grand  master's  palace  it  is  in  charge  of  France.  On  the 
line  where  we  now  are,  between  the  palace  and  the  gate  of  St. 
George,  it  is  held  by  Germany.  From  that  gate  to  the  Spanish 
tower  Auvergne  is  posted.  England  takes  the  wall  between  the 
Spanish  tower  and  that  of  St.  Mary.  You  defend  only  the  low- 
er storey  of  that  tower,  the  upper  part  being  held  by  Aragon, 
whose  charge  extends  up  to  the  gate  of  St.  John.  Thence 
to  the  tower  of  Italy, — behind  which  lies  the  Jews'  quarter, — 
Provence  is  in  charge,  while  the  sea-front,  thence  to  the  mole 
of  St.  Nicholas,  is  held  by  Italy  and  Castile,  each  taking  half. 
Not  only  have  the  langues  the  charge  of  defending  each  its 
portion  of  the  wall,  but  of  keeping  it  in  order  at  all  times ; 
and  I  may  say  that  nowhere  is  the  wall  better  kept  or  more 
fairly  decorated  with  carvings  than  where  England  holds." 

"You  have  not  told  me  who  defends  the  palace  itself." 


THE   GRAND   MASTER^   PAGE  57 

"  That  is  in  charge  of  a  force  composed  of  equal  numbers 
of  picked  knights  from  each  langue." 

Gervaise  leant  on  the  battlement  and  looked  with  admira- 
tion at  the  scene  beyond.  The  land  side  was  surrounded  by 
hills,  the  ground  rising  very  gradually  from  the  foot  of  the 
walls.  Every  yard  of  ground  was  cultivated,  and  was  covered 
with  brilliant  vegetation.  Groves  and  orchards  occurred 
thickly,  while  the  slopes  were  dotted  with  chapels,  summer- 
houses — in  which  the  natives  of  the  city  spent  most  of  their 
time  in  the  hot  season — and  other  rustic  buildings. 

"  What  a  rich  and  beautiful  country  !  "  he  said. 

"  It  is  very  pleasant  to  look  at,"  De  Lille  agreed.  "But 
all  this  would  be  a  sore  disadvantage  to  us  if  the  Turks  were 
besieging  us,  for  the  groves  and  orchards  would  conceal  their 
approaches,  the  walls  and  buildings  would  give  them  shelter, 
and  our  cannon  would  be  of  little  use  until  they  reached  the 
farther  side  of  the  ditch.  If  the  Turks  come,  I  hear  it  is  de- 
cided to  level  all  the  buildings  and  walls,  and  to  chop  down 
every  tree." 

"  If  they  were  to  plant  their  cannon  on  the  hills  they  would 
do  us  much  harm,"  Gervaise  remarked. 

"The  Turks  are  clumsy  gunners  they  say,"  Deauville  re- 
plied, "and  they  would  but  waste  their  powder  and  ball  at 
that  distance,  without  making  a  breach  in  our  walls. ' ' 

"  Even  if  they  did,  they  could  surely  scarce  pass  that  deep 
fosse,"  Gervaise  said,  looking  down  into  the  tremendous  cut- 
ting in  the  solid  rock  that  ran  round  the  whole  circuit  of  the 
walls;  it  was  from  forty  to  sixty  feet  deep,  and  from  ninety 
to  a  hundred  and  forty  feet  wide.  It  was  from  this  great  cut- 
ting that  the  stones  for  the  construction  of  the  walls,  towers, 
and  buildings  of  the  town  had  been  taken,  the  work  having 
been  going  on  ever  since  the  knights  established  themselves  at 
Rhodes,  and  being  performed  by  a  host  of  captives  taken  in 
war,  together  with  labour  hired  from  neighbouring  islands. 
Upon  this  immense  work  the  Order  had  expended  no  small 


58  A    KNIGHT   OP   THE,  WHITE   CROSS 

proportion  of  their  revenue  since  their  capture  of  the  island  in 
1310,  and  the  result  was  a  fortress  that,  under  the  conditions 
of  warfare  of  that  age,  seemed  almost  impregnable ;  and  this 
without  any  natural  advantage  of  position. 

In  addition  to  the  five  great  towers  or  bastions,  the  wall 
was  strengthened  by  square  towers  at  short  intervals.  On 
looking  down  from  the  wall  upon  which  the  three  pages  were 
standing,  on  to  the  lower  town,  the  view  was  a  singular  one. 
The  houses  were  all  built  of  stone,  with  flat  roofs,  after  the 
manner  of  most  Eastern  cities.  The  streets  were  very .  nar- 
row, and  were  crossed  at  frequent  intervals  by  broad  stone 
arches.  These  had  the  effect,  not  only  of  giving  shelter  from 
an  enemy's  fire,  but  of  affording  means  by  which  troops  could 
march  rapidly  across  the  town  upon  the  roofs  of  the  houses  to 
reinforce  the  defenders  of  the  wall,  wherever  pressed  by  the 
enemy.  Thus  the  town  from  above  presented  the  appearance 
of  a  great  pavement,  broken  only  by  dark  and  frequently  in- 
terrupted lines. 

"How  different  to  the  towns  at  home!"  Gervaise  ex- 
claimed, as,  after  gazing  long  upon  the  beautiful  country  out- 
side the  walls,  he  turned  and  looked  inward.  "  One  would 
hardly  know  that  it  was  a  town  at  all." 

"  Yes,  it  is  rather  different  to  the  view  from  the  top  of  the 
tower  of  Notre  Dame,  which  I  ascended  while  I  was  staying 
in  Paris.  But  this  sort  of  building  is  best  here  ;  the  thickness 
of  the  stone  roofs  keeps  out  the  heat  of  the  sun,  and  it  is  only 
when  it  is  almost  overhead  that  it  shines  down  into  the  nar- 
row streets.  As  you  can  see  by  the  number  of  the  people  on 
the  roofs,  they  use  them  as  a  resort  in  the  evening.  Then 
carpets  are  spread,  and  they  receive  visitors,  and  can  talk  to 
their  neighbours  over  the  low  walls  that  separate  the  roofs. 
You  can  trace  the  divisions.  Some  of  the  house  roofs  are 
larger  than  others,  but  all  are  upon  the  same  level ;  this  being 
the  regulation,  in  order  that  there  might  be  free  passage  every- 
where for  the  troops." 


THE    GRAND    MASTER'S    PAGE  59 

By  the  time  they  had  made  the  circuit  of  the  walls  dark- 
ness had  fallen,  and  concealed  the  martial  features  of  the 
scene.  Lights  twinkled  everywhere  upon  the  stone  terraces ; 
the  sound  of  lutes  and  other  musical  instruments  came  up  soft- 
ly on  the  still  air,  with  the  hum  of  talk  and  laughter.  The  sea 
lay  as  smooth  as  a  mirror,  and  reflected  the  light  of  the  stars, 
and  the  black  hulls  of  the  galleys  and  ships  in  the  harbour  lay 
still  and  motionless. 

Greatly  pleased  with  his  first  experience  of  the  city  that  was 
to  be  his  future  home,  Gervaise  returned,  with  his  compan- 
ions, to  the  auberge  of  Auvergne. 

The  next  morning  the  bailiff  D'Aubusson  bade  Gervaise  ac- 
company him  to  the  palace  of  the  grand  master.  Here  he  in- 
troduced him  to  Orsini,  an  old  and  feeble  man,  who,  after  a 
few  kind  words,  handed  him  over  to  the  chamberlain,  who, 
in  turn,  led  him  to  the  official  who  was  in  charge  of  the  pages. 
That  officer  took  him  down  to  the  courtyard,  where  four 
young  knights  were  engaged  in  superintending  the  military 
exercises  of  the  pages.  The  scene  was  exactly  the  same  as 
that  to  which  Gervaise  had  been  accustomed  at  the  House  in 
London.  Some  of  the  lads  were  fighting  with  blunted 
swords,  others  were  swinging  heavy  bars  of  iron,  climbing 
ropes,  or  vaulting  on  to  the  back  of  a  wooden  horse.  All 
paused  as  the  official  entered  with  his  charge. 

"This  is  your  new  comrade,  boys,"  he  said — "Master 
Gervaise  Tresham,  a  member  of  the  English  langue.  Be  good 
comrades  to  him.  By  the  reports  I  hear  I  am  sure  that  you 
will  find  him  a  worthy  companion." 

The  pages  had  been  prepared  to  like  the  new-comer,  for  it 
was  well  known  that  he  owed  his  appointment  to  the  bailiff 
of  Auvergne,  who  was  the  most  popular  of  the  officials  of  the 
Order,  and  who  was  already  regarded  as  the  grand  master. 
His  appearance  confirmed  their  anticipation.  His  fair  com- 
plexion and  nut-brown  hair  tinged  with  gold,  cut  somewhat 
short,  but  with  a  natural  wave,  contrasted  with  their  darker 


60  A  KNIGHT   OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

locks  and  faces  bronzed  by  the  sun.  There  was  an  honest 
and  frank  look  in  his  grey  eyes,  and  an  expression  of  good- 
temper  on  his  face,  though  the  square  chin  and  firm  lips  spoke 
of  earnestness  and  resolution  of  purpose.  The  official  took 
him  round  the  circle  and  presented  him  first  to  the  knights  and 
then  to  each  of  his  comrades. 

"  You  may  as  well  join  them  in  their  exercises.  In  that 
way  you  will  sooner  become  at  home  with  them." 

Gervaiseat  once  laid  down  his  mantle,  removed  his  doublet, 
and  then  joined  the  others.  There  was  but  one  half-hour 
remaining  before  they  broke  off  to  go  to  dinner,  which  was  at 
half-past  ten,  but  the  time  sufficed  to  show  the  young  pages 
that  this  English  lad  was  the  equal  of  all, — except  two  or 
three  of  the  oldest, — both  in  strength  and  in  knowledge  of 
arms.  He  could  climb  the  rope  with  any  of  them,  could 
vault  on  to  the  wooden  horse  with  a  heavy  cuirass  and  back- 
piece  on  him,  and  held  his  own  in  a  bout  with  swords  against 
Conrad  von  Berghoff,  who  was  considered  the  best  sword- 
player  among  them.  As  soon  as  the  exercises  were  over  all 
proceeded  to  the  bath,  and  then  to  dinner.  The  meal  was  a 
simple  one,  but  Gervaise  enjoyed  it  thoroughly,  for  the  table 
was  loaded  with  an  abundance  of  fruits  of  kinds  altogether 
novel  to  him,  and  which  he  found  delicious. 

The  official  in  charge  of  them  sat  at  the  head  of  the  table, 
and  the  meal  was  eaten  in  silence.  After  it  was  over  and 
they  had  retired  to  their  own  rooms  discipline  was  at  an  end, 
and  they  were  free  to  amuse  themselves  as  they  liked.  There 
were  many  questions  to  be  asked  and  answered,  but  his  display 
of  strength  and  skill  in  the  courtyard  saved  Gervaise  from  a 
good  deal  of  the  teasing  to  which  a  new-comer  among  a  party 
of  boys  is  always  exposed. 

He,  on  his  part,  learnt  that  the  duties  of  the  pages  were 
very  light.  Two  only  were  on  duty  each  day,  being  in  con- 
stant attendance  on  the  grand  master,  and  accompanying  him 
wherever  he  went.  When  he  dined  in  public  four  of  them 


THE   GRAND    MASTER'S    PAGE  61 

waited  on  him  at  table,  and  one  of  them  performed  the  duties 
of  taster.  If  he  returned  to  the  palace  after  dark,  six  others 
lined  the  staircase  with  torches.  On  occasions  of  state  cere- 
mony, and  at  the  numerous  religious  festivals,  all  were  in 
attendance.  By  this  time  Gervaise's  trunks  had  been  brought 
over  from  the  English  auberge,  where  they  had  been  conveyed 
from  the  ship,  and  his  garments  were  taken  out  and  inspected 
by  his  comrades,  who  all  admitted  that  they  were,  in  point  of 
beauty  of  colour  and  material,  and  in  fashion,  equal  to  their 
own. 

"  You  will  have  to  get  one  more  suit,  Gervaise,"  one  of  the 
lads  said.  "At  one  or  two  of  the  grand  ceremonies  every 
year  we  are  all  dressed  alike  ;  that  is  the  rule.  On  other 
occasions  we  wear  what  we  choose,  so  that  our  garments  are 
handsome,  and  I  think  it  looks  a  good  deal  better  than  when 
we  are  dressed  alike  ;  though  no  doubt  in  religious  processions 
that  is  more  appropriate.  De  Ribaumont,  our  governor,  will 
give  orders  for  the  supply  of  your  state  costume.  He  is  a 
good  fellow.  Of  course,  he  has  to  be  rather  strict  with  us ; 
but  so  long  as  there  is  nothing  done  that  he  considers  dis- 
creditable to  our  position,  he  lets  us  do  pretty  nearly  as  we  like. 

"  We  have  four  hours  a  day  at  our  military  exercises,  and 
two  hours  with  the  sub-chaplain,  who  teaches  us  our  books  and 
religious  duties.  The  rest  of  our  time  we  can  use  as  we  like, 
except  that  every  day  eight  of  us  ride  for  two  hours  and  prac- 
tise with  the  lance  ;  for  although  it  is  at  sea  we  fight  the  Mos- 
lems, we  are  expected  to  become  finished  knights  in  all  mat- 
ters. These  eight  horses  are  kept  for  our  service,  and  such  as 
choose  may  at  other  times  ride  them.  On  Saturdays  we  are 
free  from  all  our  exercises  ;  then  some  of  us  generally  go  on 
horseback  for  long  excursions  on  the  island,  while  others  take 
boats  and  go  out  on  the  sea  ;  one  afternoon  in  the  week  we 
all  make  a  trip  in  a  galley,  to  learn  our  duties  on  board." 


62  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

CHAPTER  IV 

A   PROFESSED   KNIGHT 

/^ERVAISE  was  soon  quite  at  home  in  the  palace  of  the 
\J"  grand  master,  and  his  companions  were,  like  other  boys, 
of  varying  characters ;  but  as  all  were  of  noble  families,  were 
strongly  impressed  with  the  importance  of  the  Order  and  the 
honour  of  their  own  position,  and  were  constantly  in  contact 
with  stately  knights  and  grave  officials,  then*  manners  con- 
formed to  those  of  their  elders ;  and  even  among  themselves 
there  was  no  rough*  fun,  or  loud  disputes,  but  a  certain  cour- 
tesy of  manner  that  was  in  accordance  with  their  surroundings. 
This  came  naturally  to  Gervaise,  brought  up  as  he  had  been 
by  his  father  and  mother,  and  having  at  frequent  intervals 
stayed  with  them  for  months  at  the  various  royal  castles  in 
which  Margaret  of  Anjou  and  her  son  had  been  assigned 
apartments  during  their  exile.  Even  at  St.  John's  house  the 
novices  with  whom  he  lived  were  all  a  good  deal  older  than 
himself,  and  the  discipline  of  the  house  was  much  more  strict 
than  that  at  Rhodes. 

He  enjoyed  both  his  exercises  with  the  knights  and  the  time 
spent  with  the  sub-chaplain,  no  small  proportion  of  the  hours 
of  study  being  occupied  in  listening  to  stories  of  chivalry ; 
it  being  considered  one  of  the  most  important  parts  of  a 
knight's  education  that  he  should  have  a  thorough  acquaint- 
ance, not  only  with  the  laws  of  chivalry,  but  with  the  brave 
deeds  both  of  former  and  of  living  knights,  with  the  relations 
of  the  noble  houses  of  Europe  to  each  other,  especially  of  the 
many  great  families  whose  members  were  connected  with  the 
Order  of  St.  John. 

These  matters  formed,  indeed,  the  main  subject  of  their 
studies.  All  were  taught  to  read  and  write,  but  this  was 


A   PROFESSED    KNIGHT  63 

considered  sufficient  in  the  way  of  actual  instruction.  The 
rules  of  the  Order  had  to  be  committed  to  memory.  Beyond 
this  their  reading  consisted  largely  of  the  lives  of  saints, 
especially  of  those  who  distinguished  themselves  by  their 
charity  or  their  devotion  to  their  vows  of  poverty,  to  both 
of  which  the  members  of  the  Order  were  pledged.  Gervaise, 
however,  could  see  around  him  no  signs  whatever  of  poverty 
on  their  part.  It  was  true  that  they  all  lived  and  fed  to- 
gether in  the  aubergcs  of  their  respective  langues,  and  that 
they  possessed  no  houses  or  establishments  of  their  own ;  but 
the  magnificence  of  their  armour  and  attire,  and  the  lavish 
expenditure  of  some  upon  their  pleasures,  contrasted  strangely 
with  the  poverty  to  which  they  had  vowed  themselves. 

It  was  true  that  in  many  cases  the  means  to  support  the 
expenditure  was  derived  from  the  shares  the  knights  received 
of  the  plunder  acquired  in  their  captures  of  Moslem  ships ; 
but  undoubtedly  many  must  have  possessed  large  private 
means ;  the  bailiffs,  for  example,  although  only  required  by 
the  rules  to  place  before  the  knights  at  their  auberges  the 
rations  they  received  for  them,  with  such  luxuries  as  could 
be  purchased  by  their  yearly  allowance  for  that  purpose,  ex- 
pended annually  very  large  sums  in  addition,  and  supplied 
their  tables  with  every  dainty,  in  order  to  gain  popularity 
and  goodwill  among  the  members  of  the  langue. 

Not  only  did  the  post  of  bailiff  confer  upon  its  owner  a  very 
high  position  at  Rhodes,  but  it  was  a  stepping-stone  to  the 
most  lucrative  offices  in  their  langues.  The  bailiffs  at  Rhodes 
had  the  right  of  claiming  any  of  the  grand  priories  or  baili- 
wicks at  home  that  might  fall  vacant,  and  the  grand  master 
was  frequently  chosen  from  among  their  number,  as,  by  being 
present  at  Rhodes,  they  had  many  advantages  in  the  way  of 
making  themselves  popular  among  the  electors.  The  emolu- 
ments of  some  of  these  provincial  bailiwicks  were  large  ;  and 
as  the  bailiffs  at  Rhodes  were  generally  elected  by  seniority 
— although  younger  knights  who  had  greatly  distinguished 


64  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

themselves  were  sometimes  chosen — they  were  usually  glad  to 
resign  the  heavy  work  and  responsibility  of  their  position  at 
Rhodes,  and  to  retire  to  the  far  easier  position  of  a  provincial 
bailiff.  In  the  majority  of  cases,  doubtless,  the  fortunes  of 
the  high  officials  were  obtained  from  the  money  amassed  when 
in  possession  of  rich  commanderies  at  home ;  but  even  this 
was  assuredly  incompatible  with  their  vows  of  poverty. 

His  hours  of  leisure  Gervaise  spent  either  on  the  water  or 
in  the  saddle,  and  his  love  of  exercise  of  all  sorts  excited  the 
wonder  and  even  the  amusement  of  his  companions,  who  for 
the  most  part  preferred  spending  the  time  at  their  disposal  in 
sleep,  in  idly  looking  out  from  a  shaded  room  at  what  was 
going  on  outside,  or  in  visits  to  friends  and  relations  at  the 
auberges  of  the  langues  to  which  they  belonged.  The  natural 
consequence  was,  that  by  the  time  he  reached  the  end  of  his 
three  years'  pageship,  Gervaise  was  indisputably  superior  in 
strength,  activity,  and  skill  in  military  exercises,  to  any  of 
his  companions.  The  majority  of  these,  after  completing 
their  time,  returned  to  the  headquarters  of  their  langue  at 
home,  to  pass  their  time  there,  until  of  an  age  to  be  eligible 
for  the  charge  of  a  commandery  obtained  for  them  by  family 
influence,  which  had  no  small  share  in  the  granting  of  these 
appointments. 

As  it  was  known,  however,  that  Gervaise  intended  to  re- 
main permanently  in  the  Island,  his  progress  was  watched 
with  particular  attention  by  his  instructors ;  and,  seeing  his 
own  earnestness  in  the  matter,  they  took  special  pains  with 
his  training.  The  bailiff  of  Auvergne  continued  to  take  much 
interest  in  him,  inquiring  often  from  the  officers  in  charge  of 
the  pages,  and  from  his  instructors,  of  his  conduct  and  prog- 
ress, and  occasionally  sending  for  him  to  his  auberge  and 
talking  with  him  as  to  his  life  and  progress.  Just  before  his 
pageship  terminated,  he  said  to  him, — 

"  I  was  rather  puzzled  at  first,  Gervaise,  as  to  what  we 
should  do  with  you  when  your  term  of  office  concluded,  but 


A   PROFESSED    KNIGHT  65 

I  am  so  no  longer,  for,  although  you  are  some  two  years 
younger  than  the  professed  knights  who  come  out  here,  you 
are  better  fitted  than  the  majority  to  take  your  place  in  the 
naval  expeditions,  and  to  fight  the  Moslem  pirates.  I  will 
see  that  you  have  your  share  of  these  adventures.  All  young 
knights  are,  as  you  know,  obliged  to  make  three  voyages,  but 
beyond  that  many  of  them  do  not  care  to  share  in  the  rough 
life  at  sea,  and  prefer  the  bustle,  and,  I  grieve  to  say,  the 
gaiety  and  pleasures  of  this  city.  For  one,  then,  really  eager 
to  distinguish  himself,  the  opportunities  are  frequent.  When 
danger  threatens,  or  heavy  engagements  are  expected,  every 
knight  is  desirous  of  bearing  his  part  in  the  fray ;  but  this  is 
not  the  case  when  the  work  to  be  done  consists  of  scouring 
the  sea  for  weeks,  without  perchance  coming  across  a  single 
pirate.  Of  course,  as  soon  as  your  pageship  is  over  you  will 
go  to  the  English  auberge,  but  I  shall  still  keep  my  eye  upon 
you,  and  shall  do  my  best  to  help  you  to  achieve  distinction  ; 
and  I  shall  take  upon  myself  the  providing  of  your  arms  and 
armour  as  a  knight." 

Accordingly,  on  the  day  on  which  his  duties  as  a  page  ter- 
minated, two  servitors  of  the  auberge  of  Auvergne  brought 
across  to  the  palace  a  suit  of  fine  armour  and  a  sword,  a  bat- 
tle-axe, a  lance,  and  a  dagger ;  also  three  complete  suits  of 
clothes,  two  of  them  for  ordinary  wear,  and  one  for  state 
occasions.  The  next  day  Gervaise  took  the  oaths  of  the  Order 
in  the  Church  of  St.  John.  The  aged  master  himself  received 
the  vows,  and  formally  inducted  him  as  a  professed  knight  of 
the  Order,  Peter  D'Aubusson  and  the  bailiff  of  the  English 
langue  acting  as  his  sponsors,  vouching  that  he  was  of  noble 
blood  and  in  all  ways  fitted  to  become  a  knight  of  Justice, 
this  being  the  official  title  of  the  professed  knights  of  the 
Order.  Ten  newly  arrived  novices  were  inducted  at  the  same 
time,  and  the  ceremony  was  a  stately  one,  attended  by  a  num- 
ber of  the  knights  from  each  langue,  all  in  full  armour. 

The  ceremony  over,  Gervaise  bore  the  title  of  Sir  Gervaise 


66  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE   WHITE   CROSS 

Tresham  ;  but  this  was  an  honorary  rather  than  a  real  title,  as 
the  Order  did  not  profess  to  bestow  the  honour  of  knighthood, 
and  it  was  usual  for  its  members  to  receive  the  accolade  at  the 
hands  of  secular  knights.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  ceremony, 
he  returned  with  the  bailiff  of  the  English  langue  to  the  au- 
berge,  and  took  up  his  quarters  there.  By  his  frequent  visits 
he  was  well  known  to  all  the  members,  and  in  a  day  or  two 
felt  as  much  at  home  as  he  had  done  in  the  pages'  room  in  the 
palace.  A  week  was  given  to  him  before  he  was  assigned  to 
any  special  duty,  and  he  was  glad  when  he  was  told  off  as  one 
of  the  knights  who  were  to  take  their  turn  in  superintending 
the  work  of  the  slaves  employed  in  strengthening  the  fortifica- 
tions, although  he  would  rather  that  any  other  employment 
should  have  been  assigned  to  him,  because  he  felt  deep  pity  for 
the  unfortunate  men  who  were  engaged  in  the  work. 

He  knew  well  enough  that  if  he  himself  were  ever  made 
prisoner  by  the  Turks,  his  lot  would  be  as  hard  and  as  hope- 
less as  that  of  the  Moslem  captives;  but  this,  although  he 
often  repeated  it  to  himself  in  order  to  abate  his  feeling  of 
commiseration,  was  but  a  poor  satisfaction.  He  saw  one  side 
of  the  picture,  and  the  other  was  hidden  from  him  ;  and  al- 
though he  told  himself  that  after  slaving  in  a  Turkish  galley 
he  would  feel  a  satisfaction  at  seeing  those  who  had  been  his 
tyrants  suffering  the  same  fate,  he  was  well  aware  that  this 
would  not  be  the  case,  and  that  his  own  sufferings  would  only 
make  him  sympathise  more  deeply  with  those  of  others.  He 
had  found,  soon  after  his  arrival  on  the  Island,  that  it  was 
best  to  keep  his  feelings  on  this  subject  to  himself.  While 
the  knights  were  bound,  in  accordance  with  their  vows,  to 
relieve  sufferings  of  any  kind  among  Christians,  they  seemed 
to  regard  their  captives  rather  in  the  light  of  brute  beasts  than 
human  beings.  The  slaves  were  struck  on  the  smallest  provo- 
cation, and  even  the  killing  of  a  slave  was  considered  a  very 
venial  offence,  and  punished  only  because  the  slave  was  of 
value  to  the  Order. 


A   PROFESSED    KNIGHT  67 

It  was  true  that  edicts  were  from  time  to  time  published 
by  the  council,  enjoining  fair  treatment  of  slaves,  and  it  was 
specially  ordered  that  those  employed  as  servants  in  the  au- 
berges  were  not  to  be  struck.  The  lot  of  these  servants  was, 
indeed,  very  much  easier  than  that  of  those  engaged  on  the 
public  works,  and  such  occupation  was  therefore  considered  a 
privilege,  the  servants  being  for  the  most  part  selected  from 
among  the  captives  of  superior  rank. 

For  the  next  six  months  Gervaise  worked  at  various  duties 
in  the  town.  He  was  employed  for  a  fortnight  in  the  infirm- 
ary, then  for  a  while  he  was  transferred  to  the  galleys  ;  but  for 
the  most  part  he  was  with  the  slaves  working  on  the  fortifica- 
tions. At  the  end  of  that  time  he  was,  to  his  great  delight, 
informed  by  the  bailiff  that  he  was  one  of  the  six  knights  of 
the  langue  told  off  to  join  a  galley  that  was  on  the  point  of 
sailing.  Among  those  going  in  her  was  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt, 
one  of  his  companions  on  the  journey  from  England. 

"  So  you  are  to  go  with  us,  Gervaise,"  the  young  knight 
said,  "  to  try  your  luck  for  the  first  time  against  the  infidels. 
This  is  my  third  voyage,  and  I  hope  that  it  will  be  more  fortu- 
nate than  its  predecessors,  for,  beyond  picking  up  two  or 
three  small  craft,  which  did  not  venture  upon  resistance,  we 
gained  neither  honour  nor  booty.  I  regard  you  as  having 
specially  good  fortune,  and  besides  being  glad  that  we  shall 
be  together,  I  expect  that  you  will  bring  good  luck  to  us,  and 
that  we  shall  meet  with  foes  worth  contending  with.  The 
corsairs  have  been  very  active  of  late,  and  have  captured  many 
prizes,  while,  on  the  other  hand,  our  galleys  have  been  un- 
fortunate, and  have  but  seldom  come  upon  the  miscreants." 

"  How  many  knights  will  there  be  on  board  ?  " 

"  Forty.  Aragon,  like  us,  furnishes  five,  Germany  ten, 
Portugal  five,  Auvergne  ten,  and  Provence  five.  We  shall  be 
commanded  by  Sir  Louis  Ricord,  a  knight  of  Auvergne,  and 
we  could  wish  no  better,  for  he  has  proved  himself  a  good  sea- 
man and  a  brave  captain.  Two  other  galleys  are  to  start 


68  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE  CROSS 

with  us.  We  are  to  cruise  separately  unless  one  gets  news  of 
a  force  so  superior  that  he  will  need  aid  to  attack  it,  when  he 
will  meet  the  others  at  a  rendezvous  agreed  upon,  and  we  shall 
work  together." 

"  Who  are  the  other  three  Englishmen?  " 

"John  Boswell,  Marmaduke  Lumley,  and  Adam  Tedbond 
— all,  as  you  know,  brave  knights  and  good  companions." 

That  evening  Gervaise  received  a  message  from  D' Aubusson, 
requesting  him  to  call  at  his  auberge. 

"  So  you  are  going  to  sea,  Sir  Gervaise  ?  I  hear  from  your 
bailiff  that  you  have  been  working  to  his  satisfaction  in  the 
town." 

"  Yes,  sir.  I  shall  indeed  be  glad  to  change  it  for  a  life  at 
sea.  In  truth,  it  is  grievous  to  me  to  witness  the  sufferings  of 
the  slaves,  and  I  would  rather  do  any  other  work." 

"  They  are  far  better  off  than  the  Christians  who  fall  into 
the  hands  of  the  Turks,"  the  bailiff  said;  "and,  moreover, 
it  is  because  their  countrymen  are  preparing  to  attack  us  that 
we  are  forced  to  use  their  labour  in  strengthening  our  fortifica- 
tions. They  have  naught  to  complain  of  in  the  way  of  food. 
Still,  I  would  myself  gladly  see  their  lot  alleviated ;  but  we 
could  not  afford  to  keep  so  great  a  number  of  captives  in  idle- 
ness ;  they  must  work  for  their  living.  Had  it  not  been  for 
their  labour  we  could  never  have  built  and  fortified  the  city. 
After  all,  they  are  little  worse  off  than  our  serfs  at  home; 
they  build  our  castles  and  till  our  land." 

"  It  may  be  so,  sir  ;  but  with  us  in  England  men  are  free, 
and  it  was,  when  I  first  came,  strange  to  me  to  see  them 
working  under  the  fear  of  the  whip.  It  is  necessary,  I  know, 
that  such  work  should  be  done,  but  I  own  that  I  shall  be  glad 
to  be  away  from  the  sight  of  the  poor  wretches,  pirates  and 
enemies  of  the  faith  though  they  be." 

"  I  can  understand  your  feelings,  and  I  too  felt  somewhat 
the  same  when  I  first  came  here.  Nevertheless,  there  is  work 
that  must  be  done  if  the  Order  is  not  to  be  crushed  by  the  in- 


A    PROFESSED    KNIGHT  69 

fidels.  Here  are  captives,  for  the  most  part  malefactors,  who 
have  to  be  fed ;  and  there  is  no  injustice  in  their  having,  like 
all  men,  to  give  work  for  food.  I  have  learnt  to  see  this  and 
recognise  the  necessity,  though  I  would  that  the  work  could 
be  obtained  without  the  use  of  harshness  and  severity.  We 
ourselves  are  prepared  at  any  moment  to  sacrifice  our  lives  for 
the  good  of  the  Order  and  for  the  great  cause,  and  it  would 
be  wrong,  nay,  sinful,  not  to  use  the  means  that  have  been 
placed  ready  to  our  hand.  Now,  Sir  Gervaise,  I  wish  you  a 
pleasant  voyage.  You  will  find  the  life  somewhat  hard,  after 
your  three  years'  residence  at  the  palace,  but  this  I  know  you 
will  not  mind.  I  have  specially  commended  you  to  Ricord 
as  one  in  whom  I  am  personally  interested,  and  from  whom  I 
hope  great  things  in  the  future.  Be  brave;  be  resolute. 
From  what  you  have  said  I  need  not  say — be  merciful.  Ful- 
fil all  orders  promptly  and  without  question  ;  bear  yourself 
courteously  to  all ;  above  all  things,  remember  that  you  are  a 
soldier,  not  only  of  the  Order,  but  of  the  Cross." 

The  next  day  Qervaise  embarked  with  his  companions  on 
board  the  galley.  It  was  a  long,  low  boat,  similar  to  those  in 
use  by  the  Venetians  and  Genoese.  It  was  rowed  by  fifty 
slaves,  who  slept  at  night  on  or  beneath  the  benches  they  sat 
on  by  day.  The  knights  occupied  the  great  cabins  in  the 
poop.  There  were  two  tiers  of  these ;  the  upper  one  con- 
tained the  little  cabin  of  the  commander,  while  the  rest  of  the 
space  on  this  deck,  and  that  below  it,  was  used  by  the 
knights  in  common.  In  the  upper  cabin  they  took  their 
meals,  and  a  third  of  their  number  slept  there,  the  remainder 
sleeping  in  the  cabin  below.  A  fourth  of  their  number  were, 
however,  always  on  guard,  lest  any  attempt  at  a  rising  or  es- 
cape should  be  made  by  the  galley-slaves. 

On  leaving  the  harbour  the  galley,  with  its  two  consorts, 
rowed  north,  and  Gervaise  learnt  that  they  were  to  cruise  be- 
tween the  mainland  and  the  islands.  Some  of  these  were  in  the 
hands  of  the  Turks,  while  others  were  still  occupied  by  Greeks. 


70  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

Except  when  there  was  a  formal  and  actual  state  of  war, 
the  Moslem  and  Christian  islands  remained  in  a  state  of  neu- 
trality, trading  with  each  other  and  avoiding  all  unfriendly 
proceedings  that  would  lead  to  struggles  which  would  be  fatal 
to  the  prosperity  of  both.  The  Archipelago,  and  indeed  the 
whole  of  the  eastern  portion  of  the  Mediterranean,  was  in- 
fested by  pirates,  fitted  out,  for  the  most  part,  on  the  main- 
land. These,  when  in  force,  openly  kept  the  sea,  attacking 
the  Christian  merchant  ships,  but  when  cruising  alone  they 
hid  in  unfrequented  bays,  or  behind  uninhabited  islets,  until 
they  could  pounce  upon  a  passing  ship  whose  size  promised  an 
easy  capture.  The  Order  of  St.  John  furnished  a  maritime 
police,  earning  thereby  the  deep  gratitude  of  Spain,  France, 
and  Italy.  They  were  aided  occasionally  by  the  Venetians, 
but  these,  being  frequently  engaged  in  quarrels  with  their 
neighbours,  did  but  a  small  share  of  this  work,  only  sending 
their  fleets  to  sea  when  danger  threatened  some  of  their  pos- 
sessions in  the  Levant. 

"  This  is  delightful,  Ralph,"  Gervaise  said,  as  they  stood 
together  on  the  poop,  looking  back  at  the  receding  city. 
"  What  a  pleasant  change  it  is  from  standing  in  the  broiling 
sun  watching  those  poor  wretches  toiling  at  the  fortifications  ! 
There  is  only  one  drawback  to  my  pleasure.  I  wish  that  we 
carried  sails,  and  were  moved  along  by  the  breeze,  instead  of 
by  the  exertions  of  the  slaves. ' ' 

"  Much  chance  we  should  have  of  catching  a  pirate  under 
such  circumstances!  "  Ralph  said,  laughing.  "You  might 
as  well  set  a  tortoise  to  catch  a  hare." 

"  I  don't  say  that  we  should  not  be  obliged  to  carry  row- 
ers, Ralph ;  but  all  the  prizes  that  have  been  brought  in  since 
1  have  been  at  Rhodes  carry  masts  and  sails,  as  well  as  oars, 
and,  as  I  understand,  for  the  most  part  cruise  about  under 
sail,  and  only  use  the  oars  when  chasing  or  fleeing." 

"That  is  so;  because,  you  see,  in  most  cases  the  crew 
themselves  have  to  row,  and  I  have  no  doubt  if  we  had  no 


A   PROFESSED    KNIGHT  71 

slaves  to  do  the  work  we  should  soon  take  to  masts  and  sails 
also ;  but  for  speed  the  rowing  galleys  are  the  best,  for  unless 
a  brisk  wind  were  blowing,  the  mast  and  sails  would  but  check 
her  progress  when  the  oars  were  out,  and  at  any  rate  con- 
strain her  to  travel  only  before  the  wind.  I  know  your  weak- 
ness about  the  slaves,  Gervaise;  but  as  we  could  neither  build 
our  fortifications  nor  row  our  galleys  without  them,  I  cannot 
go  as  far  as  you  do  in  the  matter,  though  I  own  that  I  am 
sometimes  sorry  for  them.  But  you  must  remember  that  it  is 
the  fault  of  their  people,  and  not  of  ours,  that  they  are  here. ' ' 

"  All  that  is  true  enough,  Ralph,  and  I  cannot  gainsay  you. 
Still  I  would  rather  that  we  were  gliding  along  with  sails  in- 
stead of  being  rowed  by  slaves. ' ' 

"  At  any  rate,  Gervaise,  you  will  not  see  them  ill-treated, 
for  I  myself  heard  Ricord,  just  before  we  were  starting,  tell  the 
slave-overseers  that  so  long  as  the  rowers  did  fair  work  they 
were  not  to  use  their  whips,  and  that  only  if  we  were  in  chase 
of  a  pirate  were  they  to  be  urged  to  their  utmost  exertions." 

"  I  am  right  glad  to  hear  it,  Ralph,  and  shall  be  able  to 
enjoy  the  voyage  all  the  more,  now  you  have  told  me  that 
such  orders  have  been  issued." 

For  a  fortnight  they  cruised  about  among  the  islands. 
Several  times  boats  rowed  out  from  the  shore  to  the  galley 
with  complaints  of  outrages  by  pirates  under  a  notorious  cor- 
sair named  Hassan  AH,  who  had  landed,  burnt  villages,  killed 
many  of  the  inhabitants,  and  carried  off  the  rest  as  slaves  ;  but 
no  one  could  give  any  clue  to  aid  them  in  their  search  for  the 
corsairs.  The  time  passed  very  pleasantly.  There  was  no 
occasion  for  speed  ;  often  they  lay  all  day  in  some  bay,  where 
they  could  approach  near  enough  to  the  shore  to  lie  in  the 
shade  of  trees,  while  two  or  three  of  the  knights  ascended  a 
hill  and  kept  watch  there  for  the  appearance  of  any  vessels  of  a 
suspicious  character. 

One  morning,  after  passing  the  night  at  anchor,  Harcourt 
and  Gervaise  were  despatched  just  before  sunrise  to  take  a  look 


72  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

round  before  the  galley  got  under  way.  From  the  top  of  the 
hill  they  had  an  uninterrupted  view  of  the  sea,  studded  with 
islands  on  all  sides  of  them.  Beyond  a  few  fishing-boats, 
looking  like  black  specks  on  the  glassy  surface,  no  craft  were 
in  sight.  They  were  about  to  return  to  the  galley  when, 
taking  a  last  look  round,  Gervaise  suddenly  exclaimed, — 

"  Look,  Ralph  !  There  is  smoke  ascending  from  that  island 
to  the  south-west.  There  was  none  just  now." 

' '  You  mean  from  that  bay,  Gervaise  ?  Yes,  I  see  it ;  it  is 
not  more  than  a  light  mist." 

''It  is  growing  thicker,"  Gervaise  said,  "and  spreading. 
Maybe  it  is  but  a  hut  that  has  accidentally  caught  fire,  but  it 
seems  to  me  that  the  smoke  is  rising  from  several  points." 

"  I  think  you  are  right,  Gervaise.  Let  us  hurry  down  with 
the  news.  It  may  be  that  it  is  a  village  which  has  been  at- 
tacked by  pirates  who  have  landed  on  the  other  side  of  the  isl- 
and during  the  night,  for  I  can  see  no  ships  in  the  bay. ' ' 

A  few  minutes'  run  and  they  stood  on  the  shore. 

"  Quick,  men  !  "  Ralph  said  to  the  rowers  of  the  boat  that 
had  brought  them  ashore.  "  Row  your  hardest." 

The  slaves  bent  to  their  oars,  and  they  were  soon  alongside 
the  galley,  which  lay  two  or  three  hundred  yards  from  the 
shore.  Those  on  board  had  noticed  the  young  knights  run- 
ning down  the  hill,  and,  marking  the  speed  at  which  the  boat 
was  rowing,  concluded  at  once  that  they  must  have  observed 
one  of  the  pirate's  ships. 

"Do  you  see  anything  of  them,  Sir  Ralph?"  the  com- 
mander shouted,  as  they  came  close. 

"  We  have  seen  no  ships,  Sir  Louis,  but  tttere  is  smoke  com- 
ing up  from  a  bay  in  an  island  four  or  five  miles  away  to  the 
south-west.  It  seems  to  us  that  it  is  far  too  extensive  a  fire  to 
be  the  result  of  an  accident,  for  there  was  no  smoke  until  within 
two  or  three  minutes  of  the  time  we  left,  and  before  we  started 
it  was  rising  from  several  points,  and  we  both  think  that  it 
must  come  from  a  village  that  has  been  attacked  by  pirates. ' ' 


A    PROFESSED    KNIGHT  73 

The  commander  rapidly  issued  his  orders,  and  in  two  or 
three  minutes  the  anchor  was  weighed,  the  boat  hoisted  on 
deck,  and  the  oars  in  motion. 

"Stretch  to  your  oars!  "  Ricord  shouted  to  the  slaves. 
"  Hitherto  we  have  exacted  no  toil  from  you,  but  you  have 
to  work  now,  and  woe  be  to  him  who  does  not  put  out  his 
full  strength." 

Grateful  for  the  unusual  leniency  with  which  they  had  been 
treated,  the  slaves  bent  to  their  oars,  and  the  galley  sped  rap- 
idly through  the  water.  On  rounding  the  end  of  the  island 
there  was  an  exclamation  of  satisfaction  from  the  knights  as 
they  saw  wreaths  of  white  smoke  rising  from  the  distant  island. 

"  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  it  is  a  village  in  flames,"  Sir 
Louis  said ;  "  and  from  the  suddenness  with  which  it  broke  out, 
it  is  clear  that  it  must  have  been  fired  at  several  points.  You 
say  you  saw  no  craft  near  ?  "  he  asked,  turning  to  Harcourt. 

' '  There  were  none  there,  or  from  the  top  of  the  hill  we 
should  assuredly  have  made  them  out,  Sir  Louis." 

' '  Then  the  pirates — if  this  be,  as  I  hope,  their  work — must 
have  landed  at  some  other  point  on  the  island,  and  if  they 
catch  sight  of  us  they  may  make  for  their  ship  and  slip  away, 
unobserved  by  us.  Instead  of  rowing  direct,  therefore,  we 
will  make  for  that  islet  to  the  right,  and  row  round  behind  it. 
There  are  two  others  almost  adjoining  it.  Once  past  these, 
'tis  not  more  than  half  a  mile  to  that  island  stretching  away 
south.  Once  round  that,  we  shall  be  beyond  the  one  from 
which  we  see  the  smoke  rising,  and  can  come  down  on  its 
southern  side.  The  course  will  be  double  the  distance  that  it 
would  be  if  we  took  a  straight  line,  but  except  when  we  cross 
from  island  to  island  we  shall  not  be  exposed  to  their  view, 
and  may  fall  upon  their  ships  before  the  crews  have  returned 
from  their  work  of  plunder." 

The  knights  fully  agreed,  and  orders  were  given  to  the 
helmsman  accordingly. 

"  We  must  not  over-fatigue  the  rowers,"  the  commander 


74  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

said.      "  We  may  have  a  long  chase  if  they  have  started  before 
we  get  round." 

He  therefore  gave  orders  to  the  slaves  that,  while  they  were 
to  exert  themselves  to  the  utmost  when  crossing  the  open 
sea,  they  were  to  relax  their  efforts  and  to  row  within  their 
strength  while  coasting  along  behind  the  islands.  On  board, 
everything  was  made  in  readiness  for  a  fight :  the  knights 
buckled  on  their  armour,  the  cooks  set  cauldrons  of  pitch 
over  the  fire,  the  cannoneers  loaded  her  eight  guns.  It  was 
an  hour  and  a  half  after  their  start  before  they  rounded  the 
end  of  the  last  island.  It  extended  a  little  farther  to  the  south 
than  did  that  to  which  they  were  making,  and  as  they  round- 
ed the  point,  eager  looks  were  cast  in  search  of  the  pirate 
ships.  No  craft  were,  however,  to  be  seen. 

"They  must  be  in  some  bay  or  inlet,"  the  commander 
said  ;  "  they  can  hardly  have  left,  for  it  would  have  taken 
them  half  an  hour  at  least  to  cross  the  island  with  their  booty 
and  captives,  and  even  if  they  made  straight  away  after  having 
fired  the  village,  their  ship  could  have  gone  no  great  distance, 
for  we  must  have  seen  her  if  she  put  to  sea — unless  indeed 
they  were  anchored  on  the  east  of  the  island,  and  have  sailed 
in  that  direction." 

"Keep  them  rowing  along  steadily,"  he  said  to  the  over- 
seers of  the  slaves  ;  "  but  do  not  press  them  too  hard.  We 
may  have  a  chase  yet,  and  need  all  their  strength,  for  most  of 
these  pirates  are  fast  craft,  and  if  they  should  get  a  start  of 
three  or  four  miles,  it  will  be  a  long  row  before  we  catch 
them." 

They  made  straight  for  the  island,  and  on  nearing  it  coasted 
along  its  southern  side.  It  was  some  three  miles  long,  the 
shore  being  for  the  most  part  steep,  but  here  and  there  falling 
gradually  to  the  water's  edge.  Two  or  three  little  clusters  of 
houses  could  be  seen  as  they  rowed  along ;  one  of  these  was 
on  fire. 

"That  is  good,"   Sir  Louis  exclaimed,  as,  on  turning  a 


A   PROFESSED    KNIGHT  75 

point,  they  saw  the  flames.  "  That  cannot  have  been  lighted 
long,  and  we  are  pretty  certain  to  come  upon  the  vessels  be- 
fore the  marauders  have  set  sail. ' ' 

Several  inlets  and  small  bays  were  passed,  but  all  were 
empty.  A  few  fishing  boats  lay  on  the  shore,  but  there  were 
no  signs  of  life,  as  no  doubt  the  people  would,  long  since, 
have  taken  alarm  and  sought  shelter  in  the  woods.  There 
was  a  sharp  point  just  before  they  reached  the  south-eastern 
extremity  of  the  island,  and  as  the  galley  shot  past  this,  a 
shout  of  exultation  rose  from  the  knights,  for,  near  the  mouth 
of  an  inlet  that  now  opened  to  their  view,  there  lay  four  long, 
low  vessels,  above  each  of  which  floated  the  Moslem  flag.  A 
number  of  men  were  gathered  on  the  shore  near  the  ships,  and 
heavily-laden  boats  were  passing  to  and  fro. 

A  yell  of  rage  and  alarm  rose  from  the  ships  as  the  galley 
came  into  view.  There  was  a  stir  and  movement  on  the 
shore,  and  numbers  of  men  leapt  into  the  boats  there,  and 
started  for  the  ships.  These  were  some  quarter  of  a  mile 
away  when  first  seen,  and  half  that  distance  had  been 
traversed  when  a  puff  of  smoke  shot  out  from  the  side  of 
one  of  them,  followed  almost  immediately  by  a  general  dis- 
charge of  their  cannon.  One  ball  tore  along  the  waist  of  the 
galley,  killing  six  of  the  rowers,  and  several  oars  on  both 
sides  were  broken.  Two  balls  passed  through  the  cabins  in 
the  poop.  But  there  was  no  pause  in  the  advance  of  the  gal- 
ley. The  whips  of  the  slave-masters  cracked,  and  the  rowers 
whose  oars  were  intact  strained  at  them.  There  was  no  re- 
ply from  the  guns,  but  the  knights  raised  loud  the  war  cry  of 
the  Order,  a  war  cry  that  was  never  heard  without  striking  a 
thrill  of  apprehension  among  their  Moslem  foes. 

As  they  neared  the  pirate  ships,  the  helm  was  put  down, 
and  the  galley  brought  up  alongside  the  largest  of  them  and 
a  broadside  poured  into  her ;  then  the  knights,  headed  by 
their  commander,  leapt  on  to  her  deck. 

Although  a  number  of  the  crew  had  not  yet  come  off  from 


7C  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

shore,  the  Moslems  still  outnumbered  their  assailants,  and, 
knowing  that  their  consorts  would  soon  come  to  their  aid, 
they  threw  themselves  in  a  body  on  the  Christians.  But  in 
a  hand-to-hand  conflict  like  this,  the  knights  of  the  Hospital 
were  irresistible.  Protected  by  their  armour  and  long  shields 
from  the  blows  of  their  enemies'  scimitars  and  daggers,  their 
long,  cross-handled  swords  fell  with  irresistible  force  on  tur- 
baned  head  and  coat-of-mail,  and,  maintaining  regular  order 
and  advancing  like  a  wall  of  steel  along  the  deck,  they  drove 
the  Moslems  before  them,  and  the  combat  would  soon  have 
terminated  had  not  a  shout  been  raised  by  one  of  the  overseers 
of  the  slaves.  One  of  the  other  ships  had  rowed  alongside 
the  galley,  and  the  crew  were  already  leaping  on  board  it. 
At  the  same  moment  another  ship  came  up  alongside  that 
they  had  boarded,  while  the  fourth  was  manoeuvring  to  bring 
up  under  her  stern. 

"  Sir  John  Boswell,"  Sir  Louis  shouted,  "  do  you  and  your 
countrymen,  with  the  knights  of  Spain,  finish  with  these 
miscreants ;  knights  of  Germany  and  Provence  keep  back  the 
boarders;  knights  of  Auvergne  follow  me,"  and  he  leapt 
down  into  the  galley. 

The  English  and  Spanish  knights  redoubled  their  exertions. 
The  Moslems  endeavoured  to  rally,  seeing  that  help  was  at 
hand,  and  that  but  a  small  body  were  now  opposed  to  them, 
but  their  numbers  availed  little.  The  ten  knights  kept  their 
line,  and,  hewing  their  way  forward,  pressed  them  so  hotly 
that  the  Turks  broke  and  sprang  over  the  bulwarks  into  the 
sea.  Then  the  knights  looked  round.  A  fierce  fight  was 
going  on  between  those  of  Germany  and  Provence  and  the 
enemy,  who  strove  desperately  to  board  from  the  ship  along- 
side. The  other  vessel  was  now  almost  touching  the  stern,  and 
her  crew  were  swarming  to  her  side  in  readiness  to  leap  on 
board  as  soon  as  the  vessels  touched. 

"We  will  keep  them  at  bay  there,"  Sir  John  Boswell 
shouted.  "  Do  you,  Don  Pedro,  and  your  comrades,  aid 


A    PROFESSED    KNIGHT  77 

Ricord.  When  his  foes  are  finished  with,  you  can  come  back 
to  help  us." 

Then,  with  the  four  English  knights,  he  ran  along  the  deck, 
and  reached  the  stern  just  in  time  to  hurl  backwards  the  Mos- 
lems, who  had  already  obtained  a  footing.  For  a  time  the  five 
knights  kept  back  the  surging  mass  of  their  foes.  The  deck 
was  wide  enough  for  each  to  have  fair  play  for  his  sword,  and 
in  vain  the  pirates  strove  to  obtain  a  footing. 

At  last  Sir  Marmaduke  Lumley  fell,  severely  wounded  by 
an  arrow  from  a  Moslem  marksman,  and  before  the  others 
could  close  the  gap  a  score  of  pirates  leapt  on  to  the  deck. 

"Fall  back,  comrades,  fall  back;  but  keep  together!" 
Sir  John  Boswell  shouted,  as  he  cleft  the  skull  of  one  of  the 
pirate  officers  who  sprang  at  him.  "  Sir  Louis  will  soon 
finish  his  work,  and  be  here  to  our  aid.  Ah  !  "  he  exclaimed, 
looking  over  his  shoulder,  as  he  retired  a  step,  "  Provence 
and  Germany  are  overmatched  too." 

This  was  indeed  the  case.  Stoutly  as  they  fought  the 
knights  were  unable  to  guard  the  whole  of  the  line  of  bulwark, 
and  the  Moslems  had  already  obtained  a  footing  on  the  deck. 
The  discipline  of  the  knights  stood  them  in  good  stead.  Draw- 
ing closely  together  as  they  retreated,  they  made  a  stand  on 
the  opposite  side  of  the  deck,  and  were  here  joined  by  Sir 
John  Boswell  and  his  companions.  They  now  formed  a  semi- 
circle, each  flank  resting  on  the  bulwark,  and  the  pirates  in 
vain  endeavoured  to  break  their  line.  Again  and  again  they 
flung  themselves  upon  the  knights,  only  to  be  beaten  off  with 
heavy  loss.  At  length  a  loud  cheer  arose  from  the  galley,  and 
Sir  Louis  Ricord,  with  the  knights  of  Auvergne  and  Spain  hav- 
ing cleared  the  galley  of  their  foes,  and  carried  the  pirate  that 
had  grappled  with  her,  sprang  on  to  the  deck  of  the  ship,  and 
fell  upon  the  throng  that  were  attacking  the  knights  there,  ob- 
livious of  what  was  going  on  elsewhere.  At  once  the  English 
knights  and  their  comrades  took  the  offensive,  and  fell  upon 
their  assailants  who,  at  the  sight  of  the  reinforcement,  had 


78  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

for  a  moment  stood  irresolute.  For  a  short  time  there  was  a 
fierce  struggle;  then  the  pirates  sprang  back  to  their  two 
ships,  and  endeavoured  to  cast  off  the  grapnels.  But  the 
knights  followed  hotly  upon  them,  and,  panic  stricken  now, 
the  pirates  sprang  overboard.  Many  were  drowned,  but  the 
greater  part  managed  to  swim  to  shore. 


CHAPTER  V 

SCOURGES   OF   THE   SEA 

T)REATHLESS  and  faint  from  their  tremendous  exertions, 
13  the  knights  removed  their  helmets. 

"  By  St.  Mary,"  Sir  Louis  said,  "  this  has  been  as  hard  a 
fight  as  I  have  ever  been  engaged  in,  and  well  may  we  be  con- 
tent with  our  victory  !  Well  fought,  my  brave  comrades  ! 
Each  of  these  vessels  must  have  carried  twice  our  number  at 
least,  and  we  have  captured  four  of  them  ;  but  I  fear  the  cost 
has  been  heavy." 

Seven  knights  had  fallen,  struck  down  by  sword,  arrow,  or 
thrust  of  spear.  Of  the  rest  but  few  had  escaped  unwounded, 
for,  strong  as  was  their  armour,  the  keen  Damascus  blades  of 
the  Moslems  had  in  many  cases  cut  clean  through  it,  and  their 
daggers  had  found  entry  at  points  where  the  armour  joined  ; 
and,  now  that  the  fight  was  over,  several  of  the  knights  sank 
exhausted  on  the  deck  from  loss  of  blood. 

But  the  dressing  of  wounds  formed  part  of  a  knight  of  St. 
John's  training.  Those  who  were  unwounded  unbuckled  the 
armour  and  bandaged  the  wounds.  Others  fetched  wine  and 
water  from  the  galley.  The  chains  of  the  galley-slaves  were 
removed,  and  these  were  set  to  clear  the  decks  of  the  Moslem 
corpses.  The  anchors  were  dropped,  for  what  little  wind 
there  was  drifted  them  towards  the  shore.  They  had  learned 


SCOURGES    OF    THE   SEA  79 

from  a  dying  pirate  that  the  vessels  were  part  of  the  fleet  of 
Hassan  Ali,  a  fact  that  added  to  the  satisfaction  felt  by  the 
knights  at  their  capture,  as  this  man  was  one  of  the  most 
dreaded  pirates  of  the  Levant.  They  learnt  that  he  himself 
had  not  been  present,  the  expedition  being  under  the  com- 
mand of  one  of  his  lieutenants,  who  had  fallen  in  the  fight. 

"  Now,  comrades,  let  us  in  the  first  place  take  food ;  we 
have  not  broken  our  fast  this  morning.  Then  let  us  consider 
what  had  best  be  done,  for  indeed  we  have  got  as  much  in 
our  hands  as  we  can  manage  ;  but  let  us  leave  that  till  we  eat 
and  drink,  for  we  are  faint  from  want  of  food  and  from  our 
exertions.  But  we  shall  have  to  eat  what  comes  to  hand,  and 
that  without  cooking,  for  our  servants  all  joined  the  pirates 
when  they  boarded  us,  and  are  either  dead  or  are  ashore 
there." 

A  meal  was  made  of  bread  and  fruit,  and  this  with  wine 
sufficed  to  recruit  their  energies. 

"  It  seems  to  me,  comrades,"  Sir  Louis  said,  when  all  had 
finished,  "  that  the  first  thing  is  to  search  the  holds  of  these 
vessels  and  see  what  valuables  are  stored  there.  These  may 
be  all  carried  on  board  one  ship,  and  the  others  •  must  be 
burnt,  for  it  is  clear  that,  as  there  are  four  of  them,  we  cannot 
take  them  to  Rhodes ;  and  even  with  one  and  our  galley  we 
should  fare  but  ill,  if  we  fell  in  with  two  or  three  more  of 
Hassan's  ships." 

"  But  how  about  the  pirates  on  shore,  Sir  Louis  ?  "  a  knight 
asked.  "  There  were  very  many  who  could  not  get  off  to 
their  ships  during  the  fight,  and  scores  must  have  swum  ashore. 
I  should  say  that  there  must  be  full  two  hundred,  and  it  will 
be  a  grievous  thing  for  the  islanders  if  we  leave  them  there." 

"  It  is  certain,"  the  commander  said,  ''that  we  are  not 
strong  enough  to  attack  them,  for  were  we  to  land,  a  party 
would  have  to  be  left  on  board,  or  the  pirates  might  elude  our 
search,  seize  some  fishing-boats,  and  regain  possession.  Cer- 
tainly, we  are  in  no  position  to  divide  our  forces." 


80  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

"  Methinks,"  Sir  John  Boswell  said,  "that  the  best  plan 
would  be  to  send  a  boat,  manned  with  ten  galley-slaves,  taking 
two  or  three  of  us  to  the  rendezvous,  to  fetch  hither  the  other 
t\vo  galleys.  With  their  aid  we  might  take  all  the  four  ships 
safe  into  port,  after  first  clearing  the  island  of  these  pirates. 
It  is  but  forty  miles  away,  and  eight  hours'  rowing  would  take 
us  there." 

There  was  a  general  murmur  of  assent,  for  all  wished  that 
the  trophies  of  their  bravery  should,  if  possible,  be  carried  to 
Rhodes. 

"  That  will  certainly  be  the  best  plan,  Sir  John,  though  it 
may  detain  us  here  for  two  or  three  days,  or  even  more,  for  it 
is  quite  uncertain  when  the  other  two  galleys  may  put  in  at 
the  rendezvous.  Will  you  yourself  undertake  the  mission  ?  ' ' 

"With  pleasure." 

"  How  many  will  you  take  with  you  ?  " 

"  Two  will  be  sufficient,  for  we  shall  have  no  fighting  to  do, 
as  we  shall  have  to  trust  to  our  speed  if  we  fall  in  with  an 
enemy.  I  will  take,  with  your  permission,  Sir  Ralph  Har- 
court  and  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham,  both  of  whom  have  to-day 
fought  with  distinguished  bravery.  Indeed,  I  owe  my  life  to 
them,  for  more  than  once,  when  I  was  hotly  pressed,  they 
freed  me  from  my  assailants.  Truly  none  bore  themselves 
better  in  the  fray  than  they  did." 

Three  or  four  others  joined  in  hearty  commendations  of  the 
two  young  knights. 

"  Indeed,"  one  said,  "I  was  greatly  surprised  to  see  how 
Tresham  bore  himself.  He  is  but  a  lad,  with  scarce,  one 
would  think,  strength  to  hold  his  own  in  such  a  fray.  It 
chanced  that  he  was  next  to  me  in  the  circle,  and  for  a  time  I 
kept  my  eye  on  him,  thinking  he  might  require  my  aid  ;  but 
I  soon  saw  that  I  need  not  trouble  myself  on  his  account,  for 
he  wielded  his  weapon  as  doughtily  as  the  best  knight  of  the 
Order  could  have  done,  and  one  of  the  proofs  is  that,  while 
most  of  us  bear  marks  of  the  conflict,  he  has  escaped  without  a 


SCOURGES   OF    THE    SEA  81 

scratch.  I  trust,  Sir  Louis,  that  when  you  give  an  account  of 
the  fighting  you  will  specially  mention  ihat  this,  the  youngest 
knight  of  the  Order,  bore  himself  as  stoutly  as  any  of  them. 
I  say  this,  Sir  John,  because,  not  being  of  your  langue,  I  can 
speak  more  warmly  than  you  can  do  of  his  skill  and  bravery. ' ' 

"  I  thank  you,  De  Boysey,"  Sir  John  Boswell  said,  "  and 
I  am  proud  that  my  young  countryman  should  have  so  gained 
your  approbation.  And  now,"  he  went  on,  "  while  the  gal- 
ley-slaves are  getting  a  meal — which  they  have  right  well 
earned  to-day — I  should  like  to  see  what  there  is  under  the 
hatches  of  these  ships,  so  that  I  can  give  our  comrades  in  the 
other  galleys  some  idea  of  the  value  of  this  booty  we  have 
taken." 

They  rose  from  the  table,  and,  going  on  board  the  prizes, 
lifted  the  hatches. 

"Beware  !  "  De  Boysey  exclaimed,  looking  down  into  the 
hold,  when  the  first  hatch  was  taken  off.  "  There  are  people 
below." 

A  chorus  of  cries  followed  his  exclamation. 

"They  are  the  voices  of  women  and  children,"  Sir  Louis 
exclaimed.  "They  must  be  captives." 

This  turned  out  to  be  so.  In  the  holds  of  the  four  ships  were 
found  over  a  hundred  and  fifty  women  and  children  ;  these  had 
been  brought  on  board  in  the  first  boat-loads  by  the  pirates, 
and  when  the  Christian  galley  had  been  seen  coming  round  the 
point,  had  been  thrust  below,  and  the  hatches  thrown  over 
them.  They  had  heard  the  din  of  battle  above,  but  knew  not 
how  the  conflict  had  terminated,  and,  being  afraid  to  cry  out, 
had  remained  silent  until,  on  the  hatch  being  lifted,  they  had 
seen  the  figures  of  Christian  knights  standing  in  the  bright  sun- 
shine. All  had  come  from  the  village  on  the  other  side  of  the 
island.  They  related  how  the  pirates  had  suddenly  burst  upon 
them,  had  slaughtered  all  the  men,  set  fire  to  the  village,  and 
had  driven  them  before  them  across  the  island  to  the  ships. 
The  poor  creatures  were  delighted  at  their  escape  from  slavery, 


82  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

but  at  the  same  time  were  full  of  grief  at  the  loss  of  husbands, 
fathers,  and  sons. 

Some  laughed,  others  cried ;  while  some  thanked  God  for 
their  rescue  others  heaped  imprecations  upon  the  authors  of 
their  misfortunes. 

The  knights  explained  to  them  that  for  a  short  time  they 
must  remain  on  board,  as  half  the  pirates  were  still  on  shore, 
but  that  aid  would  soon  arrive  that  would  enable  them  to  clear 
the  island. 

Half  an  hour  later  Sir  John  Boswell,  with  the  two  young 
knights,  started  in  a  rowing  boat,  manned  by  ten  of  the  galley- 
slaves.  The  wind  had  sprung  up  since  the  fight  ceased,  and  as 
it  was  nearly  astern,  they  anticipated  that  they  would  make  a 
good  passage,  and  be  at  the  little  islet,  named  as  the  place  of 
rendezvous,  before  nightfall. 

Among  the  many  bales  of  rich  merchandise  in  the  hold  of  the 
pirate  vessels  an  abundance  of  wine  had  been  discovered,  and 
of  this  a  tankard  had  been  given  to  each  of  the  slaves,  by  Sir 
Louis's  orders,  as  a  token  of  satisfaction  at  their  work  in  the 
morning. 

They  had  gone  some  two  miles  when,  from  one  of  the  inlets 
in  the  island  they  had  left  a  large  fishing-boat  was  seen  to  issue 
out. 

"  By  St.  George  !  "  Sir  John  exclaimed,  "that  boat  must  be 
full  of  pirates.  And  if  they  see  us,  which  they  cannot  help 
doing,  and  take  it  in  their  heads  to  chase  us,  we  shall  have  a 
hard  time  of  it." 

The  fishing-boat  for  a  few  minutes  kept  along  the  coast,  and 
then  suddenly  her  course  was  altered,  and  her  head  directed 
towards  their  boat. 

"Now  stretch  to  your  oars,"  Sir  John,  who  spoke  some 
Turkish,  said  to  the  slaves.  "Keep  ahead  of  that  boat,  and 
I  promise  you,  on  my  honour  as  a  Christian  knight,  that  I 
will  myself  purchase  your  freedom  as  soon  as  we  get  to 
Rhodes." 


SCOURGES   OF   THE   SEA  83 

With  a  shout  of  delight,  the  galley-slaves  bent  to  their  oars, 
and  the  boat  flew  along  at  a  greatly  increased  speed. 

"  There  is  but  small  chance  of  our  getting  away,"  Sir  John 
said  quietly.  "  At  present  we  must  be  rowing  as  fast  as  they 
sail ;  but  wind  never  tires,  while  there  are  limits  to  the  powers 
of  muscle  and  bone.  If  those  fellows  follow  us — and  I  doubt 
not  that  they  will,  for  they  must  be  thirsting  for  vengeance — 
they  will  overtake  us  long  before  we  get  to  the  rendezvous ; 
and  even  did  we  reach  it,  the  chances  are  that  we  should  not 
find  either  of  the  galleys  there.  We  must  hold  on  as  long  as 
we  can,  and  as  a  last  resource  must  run  ashore.  Unfortu- 
nately there  are  no  large  islands  on  our  way.  Nor  have  we  any 
hope  of  assistance  from  our  friends  behind.  The  inlet  looks 
east,  and  they  will  know  nothing  of  our  danger ;  nor,  if  they 
did,  could  they  help  us.  The  galley  is  short-handed  now,  and 
there  are  the  captured  ships  to  look  after,  and  the  captives  we 
rescued.  We  have  only  ourselves  to  depend  on." 

At  the  end  of  an  hour's  rowing  the  boat  astern  had  gained 
little ;  but  the  exertions  of  the  rowers  were  telling  severely 
upon  them.  They  were  still  doing  their  best,  but  their  breath 
came  in  short  gasps,  the  rowing  was  getting  short  and  unsteady, 
and  there  was  a  sensible  decrease  in  the  speed  of  the  boat. 
Three  miles  ahead  of  them  was  an  islet  about  half  a  mile  in 
diameter.  In  some  parts  it  was  covered  with  foliage,  but  else- 
where it  was  bare  rock. 

"  That  must  be  our  goal,"  Sir  John  said.  "  They  will  be 
close  to  us  by  the  time  we  get  there."  Then  he  said  to  the 
rowers,  "  Stop  for  a  minute  to  get  breath.  We  will  land  at 
that  islet  ahead,  and  I  shall  hold  to  my  promise  if  we  get 
there  in  time.  Those  of  you  who  like  can  remain  in  the  boat 
until  your  countrymen  come  up  ;  those  who  choose  can  leave 
the  boat  and  hide  yourselves  as  best  you  may.  I  leave  the 
choice  to  yourselves.  If  we  are  overtaken  and  fall,  I  cannot 
keep  my  promise,  and  it  will  be  best  then  for  you  to  remain 
in  the  boat." 


84  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

For  three  or  four  minutes  the  slaves  bent  forward  over  their 
oars  ;  but  as  soon  as  Sir  John  gave  the  word  they  straightened 
themselves  up  and  began  rowing  again.  The  rest  had  done 
them  good,  and  they  again  fell  into  a  long,  steady  stroke. 

"  Shall  we  buckle  on  our  armour  again?  "  Sir  Ralph  Har- 
court  asked  ;  for  they  had  not  put  it  on  when  they  left  the 
ship,  as  the  heat  was  very  great. 

"  I  think  we  had  better  don  our  mail  shirts  only.  In  climb- 
ing about  that  rock  ahead  of  us,  the  less  weight  we  carry  the 
better,  and  with  this  heat  I  would  rather  fight  unprotected 
than  in  casque  and  armour.  Besides,  there  can  be  little 
doubt  that,  if  they  come  upon  us,  it  will  be  our  last  battle. 
That  craft  behind  is  crowded  with  men,  and,  armour  or  no 
armour,  it  will  come  to  the  same  in  the  end.  If  it  were  not 
that  we  have  a  mission  to  fulfil,  and  that  it  is  of  all  things  im- 
portant to  send  the  galleys  to  aid  our  friends,  I  would  say  let 
us  choose  a  spot  at  the  foot  of  the  rocks  there,  where  they  can- 
not attack  us  in  the  rear,  and  there  fight  it  out  as  becomes 
knights  of  the  Cross;  but  as  it  is  our  duty  above  all  things  to 
carry  this  message,  we  must  strive  to  preserve  our  lives,  and 
must,  if  we  can,  conceal  ourselves  from  these  paynims." 

"What  are  you  going  to  do?  "  Sir  John  asked  the  slaves, 
when  they  were  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  islet.  "  I 
should  think,  after  we  have  left  the  boat,  it  will  be  best  for  you 
to  sit  quietly  on  your  benches  till  our  pursuers  arrive." 

"They  would  cut  our  throats  at  once,  Sir  Knight;  they 
will  be  furious  at  our  having  given  them  so  long  a  chase. 
Hassan  Ali's  men  care  little  whom  they  slay,  and,  irritated  by 
their  misfortune,  it  will  be  naught  to  them  whether  we  are 
Moslem  or  Christian.  I,  for  one,  shall  take  to  the  woods,  and 
hide." 

There  was  a  chorus  of  assent  among  the  other  rowers. 

"  I  trust  that  you  may  escape,"  the  knight  said.  "It  is 
for  us  they  will  be  hunting,  and  if  they  catch  and  slay  us 
they  will  not  trouble  to  search  the  island  further." 


SCOURGES   OF   THE   SEA  85 

"  It  seems  to  me,  Sir  John,"  Gervaise  said,  "  that  with  the 
aid  of  these  good  fellows  we  may  yet  have  a  chance  of  escape." 

"  What  is  your  plan,  Sir  Gervaise?  " 

"I  think,  Sir  John,  that  if,  when  we  land,  we  climb 
straight  up  that  hill,  in  full  sight  of  the  shore,  the  pirates, 
when  they  see  us,  will  follow  at  once.  The  slaves  should, 
therefore,  be  safe  for  a  time  if  they  hide  in  that  wood  to  the 
left  of  the  spot  we  are  making  for.  Will  you  tell  them  to 
keep  down  by  the  water's  edge  among  the  bushes,  and  that 
after  crossing  that  crest,  we  will  try  to  make  a  dash  round,  so 
as  to  join  them  there.  'Tis  probable  that  most  of  the  pirates 
will  start  in  pursuit  of  us,  and  if  we  and  the  slaves  make  a 
rush  for  the  shore  we  may  seize  our  boat,  push  off,  and  capt- 
ure their  craft,  if  there  are  but  a  few  left  on  board,  knock 
out  a  plank  and  scuttle  her,  and  then  row  away." 

"  By  St.  George,  your  plan  is  a  good  one,  Tresham  ! — a 
right  good  scheme,  and  we  will  try  it." 

He  at  once  translated  what  Gervaise  had  said  to  the  rowers, 
by  whom  it  was  received  with  short  exclamations  of  approval, 
for  they  were  too  breathless  and  exhausted  for  talk.  Already 
they  could  hear  the  yells  of  the  pirates,  who,  as  the  boat  ran 
up  on  the  beach  were  but  a  quarter  of  a  mile  behind. 

"  Now,  away  for  that  wood  !  "  Sir  John  cried,  as  he  leapt 
ashore.  "  Now,  comrades,  for  a  climb  up  the  hill !  " 

It  was  a  steep  ascent,  and  more  than  once  one  had  to  be 
helped  up  by  the  others,  and  then  in  turn  to  assist  them  to 
get  up  beside  him.  Louder  and  louder  rose  the  shouts  of  the 
pirates,  but  the  knights  did  not  glance  back  until  they 
reached  the  top  of  the  hill ;  then  they  turned  and  looked 
round.  A  swarm  of  men  were  climbing  after  them,  and 
were  already  halfway  up  the  cliff. 

"Heave  them  down  !  "  Sir  John  exclaimed,  pointing  to 
some  loose  rocks,  and  set  the  example  by  lifting  a  great  stone 
and  hurling  it  over  the  edge.  Harcourt  and  Gervaise  at  once 
did  the  same,  and  twenty  or  thirty  rocks  were  speedily  sent 


86  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

rolling  down  the  steep  ascent,  and  yells,  shouts,  and  cries 
were  heard  below. 

"That  will  check  them  a  bit.  Now  let  us  be  off,"  Sir 
John  Boswell  said,  and  they  at  once  started.  After  crossing 
a  hundred  yards  of  bare  rock  they  stood  at  the  edge  of  an- 
other slope  into  a  deep  valley,  beyond  which  rose  the  central 
hill  of  the  island.  The  valley  ran  right  across,  and  was  filled 
with  trees  extending  to  the  sea  at  either  end.  Running  rap- 
idly down,  the  knights  were  within  the  shelter  of  the  wood 
before  the  Moslems  had  reached  the  brow  behind  them.  A 
minute  later  they  heard  the  shouts  of  their  enemies.  Once  in 
the  wood  they  turned  to  the  left,  and  in  a  few  minutes  stood 
on  the  sea  shore.  It  was  a  little  bay  some  two  hundred  yards 
across,  and  at  either  point  the  cliffs  rose  abruptly  from  the 
water. 

"  We  shall  have  to  swim  round  the  point,"  Sir  John  said. 
"  Take  off  your  mail  shirts.  We  will  make  our  way  along 
the  rocks  as  far  as  we  can,  and  then  drop  them  into  the  sea, 
otherwise  they  will  know  that  we  have  taken  to  the  water." 

They  hurried  along  the  rocks,  and  were  able  to  make  their 
way  to  within  fifty  yards  of  the  point ;  then,  throwing  their 
mail  shirts  into  the  sea,  they  plunged  in.  All  knew  the  im- 
portance of  getting  round  before  any  of  the  pirates,  who 
would  be  searching  the  valley,  came  down  on  the  shore,  and 
they  swam  their  hardest  until  they  rounded  the  corner.  The 
wood  rang  with  the  shouts  of  their  pursuers,  but  no  yell  had 
risen  from  the  water's  edge.  A  hundred  yards  farther,  and 
they  were  able'to  land,  and  were  in  a  short  time  in  the  shel- 
ter of  the  trees  that  fringed  the  water  to  the  point  where  they 
had  left  the  boat.  There  was  no  longer  any  occasion  for 
speed,  and  they  made  their  way  through  the  thick  bushes  and 
undergrowth  quietly,  until  they  recovered  breath  after  their 
exertions.  They  had  gone  a  few  hundreds  yards  when  from 
the  bushes  the  slaves  suddenly  rose  up. 

"All  has  gone  well,"  Sir  John  said  to  them  in  their  own 


SCOURGES   OF   THE   SEA  87 

language.  "  The  pirates  are  searching  for  us  on  the  other 
side  of  the  hill.  There  are  not  likely  to  be  many  of  them 
left  here.  We  shall  soon  be  in  possession  of  our  boat  again." 

Followed  by  the  slaves,  they  made  their  way  forward  until 
they  stood  at  the  edge  of  the  wood.  Five  or  six  pirates  were 
standing  on  the  shore. 

"  I  expect  they  have  been  left  there,"  Harcourt  said,  "  to 
prevent  the  slaves  from  carrying  off  the  boat.  They  must 
have  seen  them  run  into  the  wood.  They  won't  reckon  on 
our  being  with  them." 

Drawing  their  swords,  the  three  knights  rushed  out,  fol- 
lowed by  the  slaves.  They  had  but  a  hundred  yards  to  run. 
The  pirates,  on  seeing  them,  raised  a  yell  and  drew  their 
scimitars ;  but  the  sight  of  the  knights  rushing  upon  them, 
when  they  had  expected  but  a  few  unarmed  rowers,  was  too 
much  for  their  courage,  and  when  their  assailants  were  still 
fifty  yards  away  they  turned  and  fled.  The  fishing  craft  had 
been  run  ashore  but  a  few  yards  from  their  boat. 

1 '  Get  her  afloat,  Harcourt,  and  bring  her  to  the  stern  of 
the  fisherman.  Now,  Tresham,  follow  me." 

Sir  John  Boswell  climbed  up  on  to  the  fishing  boat,  which 
was  a  craft  of  some  fifteen  tons  burden.  She  was  entirely  de- 
serted, but  the  sail  still  hung  from  the  yard,  and  a  fire  was 
burning  on  a  stone  hearth,  raised  on  some  logs  of  wood  in  the 
centre  of  the  deck. 

"  Look  for  something  to  stave  in  a  plank,  Tresham." 

Gervaise  leapt  down  into  the  hold.  There  were  some  nets 
and  spare  sails  lying  there,  but  nothing  that  would  answer  the 
purpose.  He  examined  the  planks.  The  boat  was  very 
strongly  and  roughly  built. 

"  There  is  nothing  here,  Sir  John,  that  will  do,  and  noth- 
ing short  of  a  heavy  sledge  hammer  would  suffice  to  smash 
one  of  these  planks. ' ' 

'•'  There  are  a  lot  of  them  coming  down  the  hill,  Tresham. 
We  have  not  many  minutes  to  spare,  but  we  must  disable  the 


88  A   KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

craft.  They  will  soon  be  after  us  again ;  they  have  run  her 
hard  and  fast  here,  but  when  they  all  come  back  they  will 
soon  get  her  off.  Let  us  try  one  of  these  sweeps. ' ' 

He  lifted  one  of  the  heavy  oars,  and  holding  it  upright  he 
and  Gervaise  together  tried  to  drive  the  handle  through  the 
bottom.  Again  and  again  they  raised  it  and  drove  it  down  ; 
but  the  plank  was  too  strong,  and  too  securely  fastened  to 
the  timbers. 

"  We  must  give  it  up,"  the  knight  said,  with  a  sigh. 
"  Fortune  has  befriended  us  so  far,  Tresham,  but  she  has  de- 
serted us  at  last.  Another  three  minutes,  and  we  shall  have 
thirty  or  forty  of  them  upon  us. ' ' 

At  this  moment  the  lad's  eye  fell  upon  the  fire. 

"  We  shall  manage  yet,"  he  exclaimed,  and,  seizing  a 
blazing  brand,  he  jumped  below  and  set  fire  to  the  sails 
stowed  there ;  they  were  as  dry  as  tinder,  and  the  flame  shot 
up  at  once. 

"That  is  good,  Tresham,"  the  knight  said;  "but  they 
will  put  it  out  before  it  has  caught  the  boat." 

"  Not  before  it  has  burnt  the  sails,"  Gervaise  replied. 
"  Now  for  this  one,"  and  he  applied  the  brand  to  the  lower 
edge  of  the  great  sail. 

Without  a  word  Sir  John  seized  another  brand,  and  fired 
the  sail  on  the  other  side  of  the  deck.  The  flames  flashed  up, 
and  a  wild  yell  of  rage  and  alarm  broke  from  the  pirates,  who 
were  now  rushing  down  towards  the  beach. 

"  Now  to  the  boat,  Tresham ;  we  have  no  time  to  lose  if 
we  would  avoid  being  pounded  with  stones." 

They  dropped  over  the  stern  into  the  boat.  The  galley- 
slaves  dipped  their  oars  into  the  water,  and  she  shot  away 
just  as  the  foremost  of  the  pirates  reached  the  edge  of  the 
water.  A  few  stones  were  thrown  ;  but  the  pirates  were  so 
anxious  about  the  craft,  by  which  alone  they  could  escape 
from  the  island,  that  the  majority  at  once  climbed  on  board. 

At  a  word  from  the  knight,  the  slaves  stopped  rowing  a 


SCOURGES    OF   THE   SEA  89 

hundred  yards  from  the  shore.  The  sail  was  already  con- 
sumed, and  the  yard  and  the  upper  part  of  the  mast  were  in 
flames.  A  dense  smoke  was  rising  from  the  hold,  and  the  pi- 
rates were  throwing  buckets  of  water  down  into  it.  In  a  few 
minutes  the  smoke  decreased. 

"  I  thought  that  they  would  be  able  to  put  it  out ;  but,  as 
far  as  we  are  concerned,  it  matters  little.  They  have  lost 
their  sails,  and  as  I  saw  but  four  sweeps,  we  can  travel  five 
miles  to  their  one.  If  we  find  the  galleys  we  will  look  in 
here  on  our  way  back,  and  if  they  have  not  left  we  will  fire 
that  craft  more  effectually,  and  then  the  pirates  will  be  trapped, 
and  we  can  leave  them  till  we  have  fetched  off  Sir  Louis  and 
his  prizes,  and  then  have  a  grand  hunt  here.  We  took  no 
prisoners  before,  and  a  hundred  slaves  will  be  a  useful  ad- 
dition to  our  wall-builders.  Now,  Tresham,  I  have  to  thank 
you  warmly,  for  Harcourt  and  I  doubly  owe  our.  lives  to  you. 
It  was  thanks  to  your  quickness  of  wit  that  we  regained  our 
boat,  for  I  would  not  have  given  a  ducat  for  our  chances  had 
you  not  thought  of  that  scheme.  In  the  second  place,  we 
should  assuredly  have  been  overtaken  again  had  it  not  been 
for  your  happy  thought  of  crippling  them  by  burning  their 
sails.  By  St.  George,  Harcourt,  this  young  countryman  of 
ours  is  as  quick  and  as  ready  of  wit  as  he  has  shown  himself 
a  brave  and  gallant  fighter  !  We  have  no  lack  of  sturdy  fight- 
ers ;  but  the  wit  to  devise  and  to  seize  upon  the  right  thing 
in  the  moment  of  danger  is  vastly  more  rare.  As  for  myself, 
I  have  no  shame  that  this  lad,  who  is  young  enough  to  be  my 
son,  should  have  thus,  twice  in  a  single  hour,  pointed  out  the 
way  to  safety.  With  sword  and  battle-axe  I  can,  I  trust, 
hold  my  own  with  any  man ;  but  my  brain  is  dull  when  it 
comes  to  hatching  schemes.  If  we  live,  we  shall  see  Sir  Ger- 
vaise  one  of  the  most  distinguished  knights  of  the  Order." 

"  While  I  feel  gratified  indeed,  as  I  may  well  be  by  your 
commendation,  Sir  John,  I  must,  under  your  favour,  say  that 
you  have  given  me  a  far  greater  degree  of  credit  than  is  my 


90  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

due.  There  was  the  fire,  and  there  was  the  sail,  and  the 
thought  that  the  one  would  destroy  the  other  was  simply  a  nat- 
ural one,  which  might  have  occurred  to  a  child.  As  to  the 
plan  about  the  boat,  seeing  that  there  was  the  hill  and  the 
wood,  it  flashed  upon  me  at  once  that  we  might  make  a  cir- 
cuit and  come  back  to  her." 

' '  Just  so,  lad  ;  but  those  thoughts  did  not  flash  upon  my 
mind,  nor  upon  that  of  Harcourt.  It  is  just  because  those 
sort  of  ideas  do  flash  upon  the  minds  of  some  men,  and  not  of 
others,  that  the  first  rise  to  the  rank  of  distinguished  command- 
ers, while  the  others  remain  simple  knights  who  would  play 
their  part  in  a  charge  or  in  the  defence  of  a  breach,  but  would 
be  of  no  account  as  leaders.  Now,  row  along  steadily,  men," 
he  went  on,  speaking  to  the  slaves.  "We  are  still  in  good 
time,  for  it  was  not  an  hour  from  the  moment  we  touched  the 
island  to  our  departure  from  it,  and  much  of  that  time  we  had 
gained  by  the  speed  with  which  you  rowed  before.  At  any 
rate,  we  shall  make  out  the  island  before  sunset,  and  whether 
we  arrive  there  a  little  sooner  or  later  matters  little.  Harcourt, 
hand  me  that  wineskin  and  a  goblet.  A  draught  will  do  us 
good  after  our  climb  and  swim,  and  these  good  fellows  will  be 
none  the  worse  for  a  cup  also." 

Inspired  with  the  hope  of  freedom,  the  slaves  rowed  steadily, 
and  the  sun  had  just  set  when  they  entered  a  little  inlet  in  the 
rocky  isle  that  was  their  place  of  rendezvous. 

"  Thanks  be  to  the  saints  !  "  Sir  John  exclaimed,  as  they 
reached  the  entrance.  "  There  is  Santoval's  galley." 

There  was  a  stir  on  board  the  galley  as  the  boat  was  seen 
approaching.  The  knights  had  put  on  their  armour,  which 
they  had  found  still  lying  in  the  boat,  the  pirates,  in  their  haste 
to  pursue,  having  left  her  unexamined,  while  those  who  had 
remained  on  guard  had  abstained  from  touching  anything  un- 
til the  return  of  their  captain  and  comrades. 

"  Whence  come  you,  Sir  John,  and  what  is  the  news?  No 
nv'sfortune  has  befallen  Ri cord's  galley,  I  hope?"  the  Span- 


SCOURGES   OF   THE   SEA  91 

ish  knight  in  command  shouted,  as  the  boat  came  near  enough 
for  him  to  recognize  the  features  of  its  occupants. 

"  All  is  well,"  Sir  John  shouted  back  ;  "  but  we  have  taken 
more  prizes  than  we  can  manage,  though  not  without  hard 
fighting.  Seven  knights  have  fallen,  and  at  least  ten  others 
will  not  be  able  to  buckle  their  armour  on  again  for  some  time 
to  come,  so  I  have  been  sent  here  to  beg  your  assistance ;  and 
it  is  well  that  it  should  be  given  speedily,  for  if  more  pirate 
vessels  come  up  before  you  join,  Ricord  and  his  companions 
will  be  in  a  sorry  plight." 

By  this  time  the  boat  had  reached  the  side  of  the  galley, 
and  as  Sir  John  and  his  two  companions  stepped  on  board, 
the  knights  crowded  round  to  hear  the  details  of  the  news. 
Exclamations  of  approval  and  satisfaction  arose  when  Sir  John 
related  the  incidents  of  the  fight,  and  told  them  that  the  four 
vessels  that  had  fallen  into  their  hands  formed  part  of  Hassan 
Ali's  fleet. 

"  That  is  good  news  indeed,  Boswell,"  Don  Santoval  said  ; 
"  and  I  would  I  had  been  there  to  take  part  in  so  gallant  a 
fight.  It  is  well  you  found  us  here,  for  with  four  prizes  on 
hand,  and  with  half  his  strength  dead  or  disabled,  Ricord 
must  be  in  sore  need  of  aid.  We  will  start  to-morrow  morning 
at  daybreak.  As  all  the  ships  were  taken,  there  is  little  fear 
of  any  of  the  other  pirates  hearing  news  of  what  has  happened." 

"I  don't  know,"  Sir  John  replied.  "There  were,  as  I 
told  you,  some  two  hundred  pirates  left  on  the  island.  About 
half  those,  we  know,  seized  a  fishing  boat  and  escaped,  for 
they  chased  us,  and  we  have  had  as  narrow  an  escape  from 
death  as  has  ever  fallen  to  my  lot,  though  I  have  been  in  over 
a  score  of  hard-fought  battles.  The  rest  may  well  have  taken 
another  fishing  boat  and  made  off  also,  for  we  saw  several 
craft  along  the  shores  of  the  island.  If  so,  they^  may  have 
made  for  Hassan  Ali's  rendezvous,  wherever  that  may  be,  just 
as  I  made  here,  and  by  this  time  some  of  his  ships  may  be  on 
xhe  way  there. ' ' 


92  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  By  St.  Anthony,  this  alters  the  situation  gravely  !  "  Don 
Santoval  said.  "  Fellow  knights,  we  must  lose  no  time  in 
going  to  Ricord's  assistance.  The  slaves  have  had  a  long  row 
to-day,  but  they  must  start  on  another.  Let  them  have  a  good 
meal  to  strengthen  them,  and  a  cup  of  wine  each.  Whatever 
their  scruples  at  other  times,  they  never  refuse  wine  when 
there  is  heavy  work  to  be  done,  knowing  full  well  that  a 
draught  of  it  helps  them  mightily  in  their  labours.  Your  men 
must  have  rowed  well,  Sir  John,  to  have  brought  you  here  so 
quickly?  " 

"I  have  promised  them  their  freedom,"  Sir  John  said; 
"  and  they  shall  have  it,  even  if  I  have  to  pay  their  value  into 
the  treasury.  As  I  told  you,  we  were  hotly  pursued,  for  the 
craft  with  her  sail  went  faster  than  we  with  our  oars ;  and, 
knowing  the  importance  of  bringing  the  news  here,  I  encour- 
aged them  by  promising  them  their  freedom,  should  we  get 
away.  Not  only  did  they  row  right  manfully,  but  they  proved 
faithful  in  our  extremity,  and,  when  all  seemed  lost,  stuck  to  us 
instead  of  deserting  and  joining  the  pirates." 

"  But  how  did  you  get  away,  Sir  John,  if  their  craft  out- 
sailed you?  " 

"  I  owe  my  life  entirely  to  the  quick  wit  of  my  young 
countryman,  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham  here."  And  Sir  John  then 
related  the  incidents  of  their  adventure  on  the  island,  his  narra- 
tive eliciting  warm  expressions  of  approval  from  the  knights. 

"  Of  course,  you  will  go  with  us,  Boswell  ?  "  Don  Santoval 
said,  when  the  master  of  the  slaves  announced  that  these  had 
eaten  their  meal, -and  were  ready. 

"  I  must  do  so,"  Sir  John  replied.  "  I  want  you,  on  your 
way,  to  look  in  at  that  island  where  we  had  so  narrow  an  es- 
cape, and  if  we  find  their  craft  still  there  we  can  destroy  it. 
The  place  is  directly  in  our  course  ;  we  shall,  therefore,  lose 
but  little  time  in  looking  in.  Of  course,  they  may  have  gone 
as  soon  as  they  got  their  vessel  afloat,  but  it  is  hardly  likely. 
They  would  have  no  idea  of  my  returning  with  a  galley  so 


SCOURGES   OF   THE   SEA  93 

soon,  and  will  probably  set  to  to  make  a  dozen  more  oars  before 
they  start,  for  she  had  but  four  on  board,  which  will  scarce 
suffice  to  send  her  a  mile  an  hour  through  the  water.  There- 
fore, I  fancy  they  will  not  put  off  until  to-morrow  morning. 
If  that  is  so,  and  we  destroy  their  craft,  they  will  be  trapped 
on  the  islet,  and  on  our  return  we  can  capture  them  all.  I 
think  of  leaving  Harcourt  and  Tresham  in  the  boat,  in  order 
that  when  Piccolomini's  galley  comes  in,  they  may  direct  him 
also  to  join  us." 

"  He  may  be  in  at  any  moment ;  we  met  him  three  days 
since.  He  had  captured  a  pirate,  and  sent  her  off  under 
charge  of  ten  of  his  knights.  We  agreed  to  meet  him  this 
evening ;  and  as  he  is  not  here,  he  will  probably  be  in  the 
first  thing  in  the  morning." 

Gervaise  and  Harcourt  took  their  places  in  the  boat  again. 
The  galley  got  up  its  anchor  and  started.  Just  as  she  reached 
the  mouth  of  the  inlet  another  galley  rounded  the  point  and 
nearly  ran  into  her. 

"  I  am  going  to  Ricord's  assistance,  Piccolomini,"  Don 
Santoval  shouted. 

"Is  it  urgent?"  the  commander  of  the  galley  shouted 
back.  "  We  have  had  a  very  long  row,  and  can  go  no 
farther,  unless  his  strait  is  a  very  sore  one." 

"  No.  Come  on  in  the  morning.  You  will  hear  all  the 
news  from  a  boat  lying  two  hundred  yards  astern.  Two 
young  English  knights  are  waiting  in  her  to  give  you  the 
news.  Ricord  has  made  a  fine  capture.  Row  on,  men." 
And  the  galley  proceeded  on  her  way,  while  the  new-comer 
proceeded  up  the  harbour. 

Harcourt  and  Gervaise  at  once  went  on  board,  and  the 
former  gave  the  Italian  commander  an  account  of  the  battle 
that  had  taken  place,  and  the  capture  of  the  four  pirate  ves- 
sels. After  the  exclamations  of  satisfaction  by  the  knights  had 
ceased,  he  recounted  their  own  adventures,  which  were  heard 
with  lively  interest. 


94  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  I  hope  indeed  that  Santoval  will  burn  that  fishing  boat, 
and  that  we  shall  capture  the  pirates,"  the  commander  said. 
"  We  have  need  of  more  slaves  to  carry  out  the  works  at 
Rhodes.  Now,  let  us  to  supper,  gentlemen,  and  then  to  sleep. 
In  six  hours  we  will  be  off  again,  for  if  some  more  of  these 
villains  have  escaped  and  carried  the  news  to  Hassan  Ali,  our 
swords  may  be  sorely  needed  by  Ricord  and  Santoval  to-mor- 
row. ' ' 


CHAPTER  VI 

KNIGHTED 

AT  three  in  the  morning  all  on  board  the  galley  were  astir. 
A  ration  of  bread  and  meat  was  served  out  to  the  slaves, 
and  the  boat  was  soon  afterwards  under  way.  The  rowers  of 
the  English  knight's  boat  had  been  warmly  commended  by  the 
commander  and  placed  in  charge  of  the  overseer,  with  in- 
structions that  they  were  to  be  treated  as  free  men.  As  soon 
as  the  galley-slaves  set  to  work,  however,  they  seated  them- 
selves on  the  benches  and  double-banked  some  of  the  oars, 
anxious  to  please  the  knights.  With  the  exception  of  those 
whose  turn  it  was  to  be  on  watch,  most  of  the  knights  slept 
until  daybreak. 

"  At  the  rate  we  are  rowing,  Gervaise,"  Harcourt  said,  as 
they  went  up  on  to  the  poop  together,  "  it  will  not  take  us  very 
long  to  join  our  friends.  We  are  going  through  the  water  at 
fully  six  miles  an  hour;  and  as  we  have  already  been  two 
hours  under  way,  in  another  three  we  shall  be  there. ' ' 

An  hour  and  a  half  later  they  passed  the  island  where  they 
had  landed.  The  two  young  knights  pointed  out  to  the  others 
the  valley  into  which  they  had  descended,  and  the  point  round 
which  they  had  swum.  In  a  few  minutes  they  caught  sight 
of  the  landing-place. 


KNIGHTED  95 

"Look,  Gervaise,  there  is  something  black  showing  just 
above  the  water." 

"  I  see  it.  I  think  it  is  a  line  of  timbers.  There  were 
certainly  no  rocks  there  when  we  ran  ashore." 

"  Then  Santoval  must  have  found  the  craft  still  there  and 
burnt  her,"  one  of  the  knights  standing  by  remarked,  "  and 
the  pirates  are  caged  up.  It  will  take  them  some  time  to 
make  a  raft  that  will  carry  them  to  the  next  island,  and  be- 
fore they  can  do  that  we  shall  be  back  again.  I  shall  be 
sorry  if  they  escape,  for  they  are  as  ruthless  a  set  of  villains  as 
sail  the  seas." 

The  galley  had  traversed  half  the  remaining  distance  when 
the  sound  of  a  gun  was  faintly  heard.  For  a  moment  there 
was  an  absolute  hush  on  the  poop ;  then  three  or  four  shots  in 
rapid  succession  were  heard. 

"Some  more  pirate  ships  must  have  come  up,"  the  com- 
mander exclaimed.  Then  he  shouted  down  to  the  slaves, 
"  Row,  men — row  for  your  lives  !  Overseer,  do  not  spare 
your  lash  if  any  hang  back  from  their  work." 

The  galley  had  been  travelling  fast  before,  but  her  speed 
greatly  increased  as  the  slaves  rowed  their  hardest.  Fast  as 
she  was  travelling,  the  impatience  of  the  knights  was  extreme. 
They  walked  up  and  down  the  deck,  making  vows  of  candles 
that  should  be  burnt  at  the  shrine  of  St.  John  if  they  arrived 
in  time  to  take  a  share  in  the  fight,  stopping  at  times  to  listen 
to  the  sound  of  artillery,  which  was  now  so  frequent  as  to 
show  that  a  severe  engagement  was  being  fought.  Many  of 
the  younger  knights  ran  down  to  the  waist  and  double-banked 
the  oars,  and  in  a  shorter  time  than  it  seemed  possible  the 
galley  arrived  at  the  mouth  of  the  bay. 

A  desperate  fight  was  going  on.  Ricord's  ship  lay,  idle  and 
deserted,  at  anchor.  Five  pirate  crafts  surrounded  Santoval's 
galley.  Two  of  them  were  alongside  of  her  ;  the  others  were 
raking  her  fore  and  aft  with  their  shot.  The  young  knights 
left  the  oars,  sprang  up  to  the  poop  and  joined  in  the  shout  of 


06  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

encouragement  raised  by  the  others,  and  then,  resuming  their 
helmets  and  armour,  stood  ready  to  leap  on  board  an  enemy 
as  soon  as  they  reached  her.  Piccolomini  directed  the  helms- 
man to  lay  him  alongside  one  of  the  ships  grappling  with  San- 
toval.  As  they  came  up,  their  galley's  cannon  poured  their 
fire  into  her,  and  a  moment  later  the  knights  sprang  on  board. 

In  the  din  of  battle  their  shout  had  been  unheard.  The 
pirates  thronging  the  other  side  of  their  ship  were  intent  only 
on  overcoming  the  resistance  of  the  knights,  and  even  the  dis- 
charge of  cannon  had  not  called  their  attention  to  their  foe, 
until  the  latter,  shouting  the  war-cry  of  the  Order,  fell  sud- 
denly upon  them.  A  panic  at  once  seized  them.  Some  were 
cut  down  almost  unresistingly,  but  the  great  majority,  running 
to  the  bow  or  stern,  threw  themselves  overboard  and  swam  to 
the  other  ships.  The  pirate  ship  on  the  other  side  of  Santo- 
val's  galley  instantly  threw  off  the  grapnels  and  thrust  off  from 
her  side,  and,  immediately  hauling  in  the  sheets  of  the  big 
sail,  began  at  once  to  draw  away,  while  her  three  consorts 
made  for  the  mouth  of  the  bay. 

"Back  to  your  galley,  comrades,"  Piccolomini  shouted, 
"  or  with  this  brisk  wind  they  will  escape  us." 

The  knights  at  once  crossed  on  to  their  own  craft,  the  oars 
were  got  out,  and  the  chase  began.  A  minute  or  two  later 
Don  Santoval  followed  them,  but  soon  gave  up,  as  so  large  a 
number  of  the  oars  had  been  broken  when  the  two  pirate  ships 
ran  alongside  him,  that  it  would  have  been  hopeless  to  pursue. 
The  wind  was  blowing  freshly,  and  was  rapidly  increasing  in 
strength,  so  that,  in  spite  of  the  efforts  of  the  galley-slaves,  the 
pirates  gradually  drew  away,  running  straight  before  the  wind, 
and  aiding  the  effects  of  the  sails  with  oars.  Seeing  the  hope- 
lessness of  the  chase,  Piccolomini  abandoned  it,  after  rowing 
for  two  miles,  and  returned  to  the  island.  The  other  two 
galleys  were  lying  beside  each  other,  and  Piccolomini  had  his 
craft  steered  alongside  them. 

"Thanks,  Piccolomini,  for  arriving  so  opportunely,"  San- 


KNIGHTED  97 

toval,  who  was  seated  on  the  deck  leaning  against  the  bulwarks, 
said,  as  his  fellow  commander  leapt  on  board,  and  came  towards 
him. 

"  Would  that  I  had  arrived  sooner,  Santoval,  for  I  see  that 
you  have  been  grievously  wounded  !  ' ' 

"  Ay.  One  of  the  paynims'  cannonballs  has  carried  off 
both  my  legs  below  the  knee.  The  leech  has  been  searing  the 
wounds  with  a  hot  iron,  and  says  that  he  thinks  I  shall  get 
over  it ;  but  if  so  I  fear  that  my  fighting  days  are  past,  unless, 
indeed,  I  fight  seated  on  a  chair.  However,  I  ought  not  to 
grumble.  I  have  lost  many  brave  comrades,  and  others  are 
wounded  more  sorely  than  I  am." 

Sir  Louis  Ricord  now  joined  them.  He  embraced  Picco- 
lomini  warmly. 

"  I  never  heard  a  more  welcome  shout,  Piccolomini,  than 
that  which  you  gave  when  you  fell  upon  the  Moslems,  for  in 
truth  the  issue  of  the  conflict  was  doubtful.  I  was  delighted 
when  this  morning  at  daybreak  Santoval's  galley  rowed  in. 
We  had  all  kept  watch  during  the  night,  thinking  the  pirates 
might  obtain  boats  and  make  an  attack  upon  us  ;  and,  with 
but  twenty  of  us  fit  to  wield  a  sword,  our  position  would  have 
been  a  bad  one,  and  at  any  rate  they  might  have  re-captured 
the  prizes.  We  agreed  that  Santoval  and  his  knights  should 
land  at  once.  This  they  did.  Sir  John  Boswell  had  of  course 
told  me  how  his  boat  had  been  chased  by  a  fishing  craft, 
manned  by  a  large  number  of  the  pirates,  and  that  he  feared 
the  rest  might  similarly  have  escaped,  and  might  have  gone 
to  bring  some  more  of  Hassan  Ali's  ships  upon  us. 

"  As  soon  as  Santoval  landed,  some  of  the  natives  came 
down  and  told  him  that  there  was  not  a  pirate  remaining  there, 
the  rest  having  started  in  another  boat  a  few  minutes  after 
the  one  that  had  chased  Boswell.  Santoval  left  two  of  his 
men  with  orders  to  ascend  to  the  highest  spot  on  the  island, 
and  to  keep  watch,  and  then  brought  the  rest  off  to  his  galley. 
Our  first  step  was,  of  course,  to  send  all  the  women  and  chil- 


98  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

dren  ashore.  Then  we  consulted  as  to  what  had  best  be  done 
if  the  pirates  should  come  back  in  force.  We  hoped,  at  any 
rate,  that  this  would  not  happen  until  you  arrived.  We  ex- 
pected that  you  would  be  here  before  noon  ;  but  we  decided 
that,  should  they  get  here  before  you,  we  from  our  galley 
would  embark  on  Santoval's,  as  it  was  better  to  fight  in  one 
strongly-manned  boat  than  to  divide  our  forces. 

"It  was  scarce  half  an  hour  after  Santoval  came  down  be- 
fore the  men,  left  on  the  look-out,  appeared  on  the  beach.  On 
fetching  them  off,  they  told  us  that  as  soon  as  they  reached 
the  top  of  the  hill  they  saw  five  vessels  approaching  with  sails 
and  oars,  and  that  they  would  be  here  in  half  an  hour  at  the 
outside.  We  at  once  abandoned  my  galley,  brought  the  row- 
ers and  the  wounded  here,  and  prepared  for  the  fight.  As  you 
saw,  they  ran  their  two  biggest  ships  alongside  us,  and  for  two 
hours  the  fight  went  on.  They  were  crowded  with  men,  who 
in  vain  strove  to  get  a  footing  on  our  decks.  Had  we  only 
had  these  two  to  deal  with,  we  should  have  had  nothing  to 
fear,  heavily-manned  though  they  were ;  but  the  other  three 
kept  sailing  backwards  and  forwards,  discharging  their  guns' 
into  us  as  they  passed,  firing  not  only  shot,  but  bags  of  bullets. 

"  Their  gunners  were  skilful,  and,  as  you  see,  they  have 
completely  riddled  our  poop.  Twenty  knights  have  been 
killed,  and  eleven  others  are  sorely  wounded.  Scarce  one  has 
escaped  unscathed.  You  may  guess,  then,  how  welcome  was 
your  aid,  which  we  had  not  expected  for  another  three  hours. 
We  were  on  the  point  of  abandoning  the  waist  and  gathering 
on  the  poop,  which  we  could  still  have  defended  for  a  consid- 
erable time,  when,  as  if  dropped  from  the  skies,  you  fell  upon 
the  pirates,  and  turned  the  tables.  How  is  it  that  you  were 
here  so  early  ?  ' ' 

"  We  started  at  three  o'clock,  instead  of  waiting  for  day- 
break. It  seemed,  from  the  story  of  the  two  young  knights, 
that  it  was  possible  you  might  be  attacked  early,  and,  crippled 
as  your  command  was,  and  with  four  prizes  on  your  hands,  I 


KNIGHTED  99 

deemed  it  best  to  come  on  as  soon  as  the  rowers  had  had  a 
few  hours'  rest." 

"It  is  well  that  you  did  so  ;  it  would  have  been  a  grievous 
affair  had  two  of  our  galleys  been  captured  by  the  pirates. 
It  would  have  been  a  blow  to  the  prestige  of  the  Order,  and 
would  have  brought  such  strength  to  Hassan  Ali  and  other 
pirate  leaders  that  nothing  short  of  sending  out  a  fleet  would 
have  recovered  our  ascendency  ;  and  as  every  ducat  we  can 
spare  has  to  be  spent  on  the  fortifications,  it  would  have  been 
a  misfortune  indeed  had  we  been  obliged  to  fit  out  such  an 
expedition  at  present." 

' '  Who  have  fallen,  Sir  Louis  ?  ' ' 

"  Five  more  of  the  knights  of  my  galley — Pierre  des  Vignes, 
Raoul  de  Montpelier,  Ernest  Schmidt,  Raymond  Garcia,  and 
Albert  Schenck.  Here  is  the  list  of  the  knights  of  Santoval's 
galley. ' ' 

"  'Tis  a  long  list,  and  a  sad  one,"  Piccolomini  said,  after 
reading  the  names.  "  With  the  seven  who  fell  in  your  first 
fight,  twenty-seven  knights  have  fallen,  all  brave  comrades. 
Truly,  we  can  ill  spare  such  a  loss.  It  is  true  there  are  five 
prizes  to  show  for  it,  and  we  have  struck  Hassan  Ali  a  blow 
that  will  resound  through  the  Levant ;  but  the  cost  is  heavy." 

"  It  is  indeed,"  Ricord  agreed.  "  The  four  vessels  are  well 
filled  with  rich  spoil  that  the  scoundrels  had  gathered,  and  I 
doubt  not  the  one  you  captured  is  equally  rich.  Still,  had 
they  been  ten  times  as  valuable,  the  booty  would  be  dearly 
purchased  at  such  a  price. ' ' 

There  was  now  a  consultation  among  the  leaders,  and  it 
was  agreed  that  six  knights  should  be  placed  in  each  of  the 
captured  ships,  with  ten  of  the  galley-slaves  to  work  the  sails, 
the  others  being  equally  divided  between  the  three  galleys. 
They  were,  in  the  first  place,  to  row  to  the  island  where  the 
pirates  were  imprisoned,  and  to  slay  or  capture  the  whole  of 
them  ;  afterwards  they  were  to  make  direct  for  Rhodes ;  with 
so  numerous  a  fleet  there  was  no  fear  of  their  being  attacked. 


100  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE   WHITE    CROSS 

The  arrangements  took  but  a  short  time  to  complete.  An 
hour  later  they  left  the  port,  the  three  galleys  rowing  ahead, 
while  the  five  prizes,  under  easy  sail,  followed  them. 

Sir  John  Boswell  had  been  wounded,  but  not  so  seriously 
as  to  altogether  disable  him,  and  he  was  in  command  of  one 
of  the  prizes,  having  Sir  Adam  Tedbond,  Harcourt,  Gervaise, 
and  a  German  knight,  with  him.  Sir  Marmaduke  Lumley, 
who,  after  the  first  fight  was  over,  was  found,  to  the  surprise 
and  pleasure  of  his  comrades,  to  be  still  living,  was,  with  the 
rest  of  the  wounded,  on  board  one  of  the  galleys.  Two  of  the 
pirates  had  fallen  dead  across  him,  and  in  the  ardour  of  their 
attack  on  the  knights,  he  had  lain  there  unnoticed  until  the 
return  of  Sir  Louis  and  his  comrades  had  driven  the  pirates 
overboard.  The  leech  was  of  opinion  that  he  might  yet  re- 
cover from  his  wound. 

On  arriving  at  the  island,  sixty  of  the  knights  disembarked. 
The  woods  near  the  shore  were  first  searched,  but  were  found 
untenanted.  They  were  about  to  advance  up  the  hill  when  a 
man  appeared  on  the  crest  above  them  waving  a  white  flag. 
He  was  told  to  come  down,  and  on  his  arrival  said  that  he 
was  sent  by  his  companions  to  offer  to  surrender,  on  the  prom- 
ise that  their  lives  should  be  spared.  The  knights  were  well 
pleased  to  be  saved  the  trouble  of  a  long  search  through  the 
woods,  and  the  messenger  left  at  once  to  acquaint  the  pirates 
that  their  terms  were  accepted.  In  a  short  time  some  eighty 
men  made  thejr  way  down  the  hill.  On  reaching  the  beach 
they  were  disarmed,  divided  equally  between  the  galleys,  and 
distributed  among  the  rowers,  filling  up  the  places  of  those 
who  had  been  killed  by  the  fire  of  the  Moslems,  and  of  the 
men  drafted  into  the  prizes.  They  begged  for  food  and  water 
before  they  began  work,  and,  on  being  questioned,  admitted 
that  their  surrender  was  due  principally  to  the  fact  that  they 
had  been  unable  to  find  food  of  any  sort  on  the  island,  and 
that  after  searching  all  over  it  no  spring  of  water  could  be  dis- 
covered. 


KNIGHTED  101 

"  In  that  case,"  Sir  John  Boswell  said,  "  I  have  no  doubt 
they  have  all  surrendered.  I  before  thought  it  probable  that 
a  good  many  of  them  would  have  remained  hidden,  trusting 
to  be  able  to  make  a  raft  after  we  had  left,  and  so  get  away, 
believing  rightly  enough  that  we  should  be  disinclined  to  search 
every  foot  of  the  island  for  them.  As  it  is,  I  doubt  not,  all 
are  here." 

The  little  fleet  anchored  that  night  at  the  rendezvous,  and 
after  two  more  days'  rowing  reached  Rhodes,  where  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  three  galleys,  followed  by  their  five  prizes,  was 
greeted  with  great  acclamation.  The  news,  however,  that 
twenty-seven  knights  had  fallen,  and  that  thirteen  or  fourteen 
others  were  very  gravely  wounded,  damped  the  satisfaction  that 
every  one  had  at  first  felt.  D'Aubusson  came  down  as  soon 
as  they  reached  the  mole,  and  was  greatly  affected  when  he 
received  Ricord's  report. 

"It  is  an  unfortunate  loss  indeed,  Sir  Louis,"  he  said, 
"  though  it  may  be  that  the  victory  is  not  too  dearly  purchased. 
I  do  not  speak  of  the  captured  ships,  nor  of  the  spoil  they  con- 
tain, nor  even  of  the  slaves  you  have  brought  us,  welcome 
though  all  may  be,  but  of  the  effect  that  the  defeat  and  capt- 
ure of  these  craft  of  Hassan  Ali's  will  have.  It  is  plain  that 
the  preparations  the  sultan  is  making,  and  the  belief  that 
Rhodes  is  doomed,  have  so  encouraged  the  infidels  that  they 
are  becoming  really  formidable  at  sea.  This  blow  will  show 
them  that  the  Order  has  yet  power  to  sweep  the  sea  of  pirates. 
Since,  however,  this  adventure  has  taught  us  that  a  single 
leader  like  Hassan  sails  with  at  least  nine  ships  under  his 
orders,  it  is  clear  that  in  future  our  galleys  must  not  advent- 
ure singly  among  the  islands.  It  was  fortunate  indeed  that 
first  Santoval,  and  then  Piccolomini,  arrived  to  your  assist- 
ance. How  was  it  that  they  happened  to  come  up  so  op- 
portunely ?  ' ' 

"  Sir  John  Boswell,  with  Ralph  Har court  and  Gervaise 
Tresham,  went  in  a  boat  to  the  rendezvous  we  had  arranged, 


102  A   KNIGHT   OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

and  reached  it  after  an  adventure,  which  I  will  leave  Sir  John 
to  tell  himself.  I  may  say  that  the  two  young  knights  named 
had  in  our  encounter  both  obtained  very  high  credit  amongst 
us  all  for  the  valour  with  which  they  fought.  No  one  bore 
himself  more  stoutly,  and  I  am  glad  to  take  this  early  oppor- 
tunity of  bringing  their  conduct  before  your  notice.  As  you 
will  learn  from  Sir  John,  Gervaise  Tresham  afterwards  showed 
a  quickness  of  wit  that  was  the  means  of  saving  the  lives  of 
those  with  him,  and  I  may  say  also  of  all  with  me,  for  had 
they  failed  to  reach  the  rendezvous  we  should  have  fallen  easy ' 
victims  to  the  five  ships  Hassan  Ali  brought  against  us." 

Sending  for  Sir  John  Boswell,  the  grand  prior  heard  from 
him  the  details  of  his  adventure  in  the  boat. 

' '  I  am  right  glad  to  hear  you  speak  so  warmly  of  Tresham, 
Sir  John,  for  I  regard  him  as  my  special  protegt,  and  am 
pleased  indeed  to  find  that  at  this  outset  of  his  career  he  has 
proved  himself  not  only  a  brave  knight,  but  full  of  resource, 
and  quick  at  invention.  I  think,  Sir  John,  that  these  two 
young  knights  have  shown  themselves  well  worthy  of  receiving 
the  honour  of  secular  knighthood." 

"  Assuredly  they  have,"  Sir  John  agreed. 

"  Then,  Sir  John,  will  you  bestow  it  upon  them  ?  The  Order, 
as  an  Order,  does  not  bestow  the  honour,  but  its  members  do  not 
forfeit  their  right  as  knights  to  bestow  it  individually,  and  none 
among  us  are  more  worthy  of  admitting  them  to  your  rank 
than  yourself." 

"  I  would  gladly  do  it,  Sir  Peter ;  but  the  honour  would 
come  far  better  from  yourself,  and  would  not  only  be  more 
highly  prized  by  them,  but  would  be  of  greater  value  in  the 
eyes  of  others.  I  am  but  a  simple  knight -commander  of  the 
Order,  and  my  name  would  scarce  be  known  beyond  its  ranks. 
But  to  be  knighted  by  one  whose  name  is  known  and  honoured 
throughout  Europe  would  give  them  a  standing  wherever  they 
went,  and  place  them  on  a  level  with  the  best." 

"  If  that  is  your  opinion,  Boswell,  I  will  myself  undertake  it, 


KNIGHTED  103 

and  will  do  it  at  once;  it  were  better  done  here  than  at  a" 
conclave  of  the  Order — now,  when  they  are  fresh  from  the 
battle.     Let  the  knights  be  summoned  from  the  other  galleys 
at  once." 

In  a  few  minutes  the  whole  of  the  knights  were  assembled 
on  the  poop  of  the  galley. 

"  Friends,  and  brother  knights,"  D'Aubusson  said.  "  First, 
in  the  name  of  the  Order,  I  have  to  thank  you  all  most  heart- 
ily for  the  brave  deeds  that  you  have  performed,  and  for  the 
fresh  honour  you  have  won  for  it.  Every  man  has,  as  I  learn 
from  the  three  commanders,  borne  himself  as  a  true  and  valiant 
knight,  ready  to  give  his  life  in  the  cause  of  the  Order  and  of 
humanity.  Two  names  have  been  specially  brought  before  me 
by  commander  Ricord,  and  by  the  good  knight  Sir  John  Bos- 
well  ;  they  are  those  of  two  young  companions  who,  though 
knights  of  our  Order,  have  not  yet  received  secular  knight- 
hood, and  this,  in  the  opinion  of  these  tw\,  knights,  they  have 
right  worthily  won.  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt  and  Sir  Gervaise 
Tresham,  step  forward." 

The  two  young  knights,  colouring  with  pleasure  at  this  un- 
expected honour,  removed  their  helmets,  and  stood  with  bowed 
heads  before  the  grand  prior.  D'Aubusson  went  on,  turning 
to  the  knights  around  him,  "  I  am  about,  comrades,  to  under- 
take the  office  of  knighting  them.  Sir  Louis  Ricord  and  Sir 
John  Boswell  stand  as  their  sponsors.  But  before  I  proceed  I 
would  ask  you  all  whether  you,  too,  approve,  and  hold  that 
Sir  Ralph  Harcourt  and  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham  have  proved 
themselves  worthy  of  the  honour  of  secular  knighthood  at  my 
hands?" 

There  was  a  general  reply  in  the  affirmative,  the  answer  of 
the  survivors  of  Ricord's  crew  being  specially  emphatic.  The 
grand  prior  drew  his  sword,  and  the  two  young  knights  knelt 
before  him,  their  sponsors  standing  beside  them. 

"  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt,  you  have  now  been  four  years  a 
knight  of  this  Order,  but  hitherto  you  have  had  no  opportu- 


104  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

nity  of  drawing  sword  against  the  infidels.  Now  that  the 
chance  has  come,  you  have  proved  yourself  a  true  and  valiant 
brother  of  the  Order,  and  well  worthy  of  the  secular  accolade. 
It  is  in  that  capacity  that  I  now  knight  you.  It  is  not  the 
grand  prior  of  Auvergne,  but  Sir  Peter  D'Aubusson,  of  the 
grand  cross  of  St.  Louis,  who  now  bestows  upon  you  the  hon- 
our of  secular  knighthood."  He  touched  him  lightly  with  the 
sword. 

He  then  turned  to  Gervaise. 

"You,  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham,  are  young  indeed  to  receive 
the  honour  of  secular  knighthood  ;  but  valour  is  of  no  age,  and 
in  the  opinion  of  your  commanders,  and  in  that  of  your  com- 
rades, you  have  proved  yourself  worthy  of  the  honour.  You 
have  shown  too,  that,  as  Sir  John  Bos  well  has  related  to  me, 
you  are  not  only  brave  in  action,  but  able,  in  the  moment  of 
danger,  to  plan  and  to  execute.  You  were,  he  tells  me,  the 
means  of  saving  his  life  and  that  of  your  comrade,  and,  by  thus 
enabling  him  to  bear  to  the  place  of  rendezvous  the  news  of 
Sir  Louis's  danger,  were  also  the  means  of  saving  the  lives  of 
Sir  Louis  and  his  companions,  and  of  bringing  home  in  safety 
the  prizes  he  had  taken.  With  such  a  beginning  it  is  easy  to 
foresee  that  you  will  win  for  yourself  some  day  a  distinguished 
position  in  the  ranks  of  the  Order,  and  are  most  worthy  of  the 
honour  I  now  bestow  upon  you."  And  he  touched  him  with 
his  sword. 

The  two  young  knights  rose  to  their  feet,  bowed  deeply  to 
D'Aubusson,  and  then  retired,  with  their  sponsors.  They  were 
at  once  surrounded  by  the  knights,  who  shook  them  by  the 
hand,  and  warmly  congratulated  them  upon  the  honour  that 
had  befallen  them,  receiving  equally  warm  congratulations  on 
their  arrival  at  the  auberge  of  the  langue. 

The  five  prizes  turned  out,  when  their  cargoes  were  landed, 
to  be  much  more  valuable  than  the  cursory  examination  made 
by  the  knights  had  warranted  them  in  expecting.  They  con- 
tained, indeed,  an  accumulation  of  the  most  valuable  contents 


GERVAISE  AND   RALPH   ARE   KNIGHTED   BY  THE  GRAND    PRIOR. 


KNIGHTED  105 

of  the  prizes  taken  by  the  pirates  for  a  long  time  previously  ;  and 
as  these  desperadoes  preyed  upon  Turkish  commerce  as  well  as 
Christian,  the  goods  consisted  largely  of  Eastern  manufactures 
of  all  kinds.  Costly  robes,  delicate  embroidery,  superb  carpets, 
shawls,  goldsmiths'  work,  and  no  small  amount  of  jewels,  were 
among  the  spoil  collected,  and  the  bulk  of  the  merchandise 
captured  was,  two  days  later,  despatched  in  galleys  to  Genoa 
and  Marseilles,  to  be  sold  for  the  benefit  of  the  Order. 

D'Aubusson  without  hesitation  carried  out  Sir  John  Bos- 
well's  promise  to  the  slaves  who  had  rowed  his  boat.  They 
were  not  only  set  at  liberty,  but  were  each  presented  with  a 
sum  of  money,  and  were  placed  on  board  a  galley,  and  landed 
on  the  mainland. 

The  English  knights  were  all  proud  of  the  honour  that  had 
been  won  by  their  young  countrymen,  the  only  exception  be- 
ing Robert  Rivers,  who  was  devoured  with  jealousy  at  their 
advancement.  He  did  not  openly  display  his  feelings,  for  the 
reports  not  only  of  Sir  John  Boswell,  but  of  the  other  two  Eng- 
lish knights,  were  so  strong  that  he  dared  not  express  his  dis- 
content. He  himself  had  twice  been  engaged  with  pirates,  but 
had  gained  no  particular  credit,  and  indeed  had,  in  the  opinion 
of  his  comrades,  been  somewhat  slack  in  the  fray.  .He  was  no 
favourite  in  the  auberge,  though  he  spared  no  pains  to  ingra- 
tiate himself  with  the  senior  knights,  and  had  a  short  time  before 
been  very  severely  reprimanded  by  the  bailiff  for  striking  one 
of  the  servants. 

"  I  have  more  than  once  had  to  reprove  you  for  your  man- 
ners to  the  servants,"  the  bailiff  said.  "  You  will  now  be  pun- 
ished by  the  septaine ;  you  will  fast  for  seven  days,  on  Wednes- 
day and  Friday  you  will  receive  bread  and  water  only,  and 
will  be  confined  to  the  auberge  for  that  period.  The  next  time 
that  I  have  reason  to  complain  of  you,  I  shall  bring  the  matter 
before  the  grand  master,  and  represent  to  him  that  it  were  best 
to  send  you  home,  since  you  cannot  comport  yourself  to  the 
servants  of  the  auberge  as  befits  a  knight  of  the  Order.  We 


106  A   KNIGHT   OF  THE   WHITE   CROSS 

have  always  borne  the  reputation  of  being  specially  kind  to 
our  servants,  and  it  is  intolerable  that  one,  who  has  been  but  a 
short  time  only  a  professed  knight,  should  behave  with  a  hau- 
teur and  insolence  that  not  even  the  oldest  among  us  would 
permit  himself.  There  is  not  one  of  the  servants  here  who  was 
not  in  his  own  country  of  a  rank  and  station  equal,  if  not  su- 
perior, to  your  own ;  and  though  misfortune  has  fallen  upon 
them,  they  are  to  be  pitied  rather  than  condemned  for  it.  In 
future,  you  are  to  give  no  order  whatever  to  the  servants,  nor 
to  address  them,  save  when  at  meals  you  require  anything.  If 
you  have  any  complaints  to  make  of  their  conduct  to  you,  you 
will  make  them  to  me,  and  I  will  inquire  into  the  matter ;  and 
if  I  find  they  have  failed  in  their  duty  they  will  be  punished. 
I  shall  keep  my  eye  upon  you  in  the  future.  There  are  other 
faults  that  I  have  observed  in  you.  More  than  once  I  have 
heard  you  address  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham  in  a  manner  which, 
were  not  duelling  forbidden  by  our  rules,  might  bring  about 
bloodshed ;  and  from  what  I  have  seen  when  I  have  been 
watching  the  exercises,  he  is  as  much  your  superior  in  arms  as 
he  is  in  manner  and  disposition. ' ' 

This  reproof  had  greatly  subdued  Robert  Rivers ;  and  as  he 
felt  that  any  display  of  his  jealousy  of  Gervaise  would  be  re- 
sented by  the  other  knights,  and  might  result  in  serious  conse- 
quences to  himself,  he  abstained  from  any  exhibition  of  it  when 
they  returned  to  the  auberge,  although  he  could  not  bring  him- 
self to  join  in  the  congratulations  offered  to  them.  The  next 
day,  however,  when  he  was  talking  to  Ralph  Harcourt,  he  re- 
marked,— 

"From  what  I  hear,  Harcourt,  D'Aubusson  praised  young 
Tresham  very  highly.  It  seems  to  me  that  there  was  nothing 
at  all  out  of  the  way  in  what  he  did,  and  it  was  very  unfair 
that  he  should  be  selected  for  higher  praise  than  yourself." 

"  It  was  not  unfair  at  all,"  Ralph  said  warmly,  for  he  was 
of  a  generous  nature,  and  incapable  of  the  base  feeling  of  envy. 
"  Tresham  did  a  great  deal  more  than  I  did.  When  we  saw 


KNIGHTED  107 

the  pirate  boat  gaining  so  fast  upon  us,  it  seemed  to  Sir  John 
Boswell,  as  well  as  to  myself,  that  there  was  scarce  a  chance  of 
escape,  and  that  all  we  could  do  was  to  choose  a  spot  on  which 
to  make  a  stand,  and  then  to  sell  our  lives  as  dearly  as  we 
could.  I  could  see  that  Sir  John  was  scanning  the  hill  for  a 
spot  where  we  could  best  defend  ourselves.  As  to  hiding  on 
so  small  an  island,  with  a  hundred  men  eager  for  our  blood 
searching  for  us,  it  was  well-nigh  impossible.  It  was  Tresh- 
am's  suggestion  alone  that  saved  our  lives  and  enabled  us  to 
fetch  succour  to  Sir  Louis.  Sir  John,  who  is  an  old  and  tried 
soldier,  said  that  for  quickness  and  merit  of  conception,  the 
oldest  knight  in  the  Order  could  not  have  done  better ;  and  he 
is  not  one  to  praise  unduly.  I  am  four  years  older  than  Ger- 
vaise  Tresham,  but  I  tell  you  that  were  he  named  to-morrow 
commander  of  a  galley,  I  would  willingly  serve  under  him." 

"  Well,  well,  you  need  not  be  angry,  Harcourt,  I  have 
nothing  to  say  against  Tresham.  No  doubt  he  had  a  happy 
thought,  which  turned  out  well ;  but  I  cannot  see  that  there 
was  anything  wonderful  in  it,  and  it  seemed  to  me  unfair  that 
one  who  is  a  mere  boy  should  receive  higher  praise  than  your- 
self, who,  as  I  heard  Sir  John  and  Sir  Adam  Tedbond  say 
last  night  at  the  refectory,  bore  yourself  right  gallantly. ' ' 

"I  did  my  best,"  Ralph  said  shortly;  "but  there  was 
small  credit  in  that  when  we  were  fighting  for  our  lives.  The 
most  cowardly  beast  will  fight  under  such  circumstances. 
When  you  see  a  Moslem  rushing  at  you,  scimitar  in  hand,  and 
know  that  if  you  do  not  cut  him  down  he  will  cut  you  down, 
you  naturally  strike  as  hard  and  as  quickly  as  you  can.  You 
have  never  liked  Gervaise,  Rivers.  I  am  sure  I  don't  know 
why,  but  you  always  speak  in  a  contemptuous  sort  of  tone 
about  him.  True,  it  does  him  no  harm,  but  it  certainly  does 
you  no  good.  For  what  reason  should  you  feel  a  contempt 
for  him  ?  Although  so  much  younger,  he  is  a  better  swords- 
man and  a  better  rider  than  you  are.  He  is  liked  by  every 
one  in  the  auberge,  which  is  more  than  can  be  said  of  your- 


108  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

self ;  he  is  always  good-tempered,  and  is  quiet  and  unassuming. 
What  on  earth  do  you  always  set  yourself  against  him  for  ?  " 

"  I  do  not  know  that  I  do  set  myself  against  him,"  Rivers 
said  sullenly.  "  I  own  to  having  no  great  liking  for  him,  which 
is  natural  enough,  seeing  that  his  father  was  a  Lancastrian, 
while  we  are  Yorkists  ;  but  it  is  not  pleasant  to  see  so  much 
made  of  a  boy,  merely  because  D'Aubusson  has  favoured  him." 

"I  am  certain,"  Harcourt  said  hotly,  "that  such  an  idea 
has  never  occurred  to  any  one  but  yourself.  Sir  Peter  is  a 
great  man  and  will  soon  be  our  grand  master,  but  at  present 
he  is  but  grand  prior  of  the  langue  of  Auvergne,  and  whether 
he  favours  Tresham  or  not  is  a  matter  that  concerns  none  of 
us.  Gervaise  is  liked  by  us  for  his  own  good  qualities.  He 
bears  himself,  as  a  young  knight  should  do,  respectfully  towards 
his  seniors,  and  is  ever  ready  to  do  a  service  to  any  one.  No 
one  has  ever  seen  him  out  of  temper  ;  he  is  always  kind  and 
considerate  to  the  servants,  and  when  in  command  of  parties 
of  slaves  at  the  public  works  never  says  a  harsh  word  to  them, 
but  treats  them  as  if  they  were  human  beings,  and  not  brute 
beasts.  Besides,  though  he  is  more  skilful  than  any  of  us  with 
his  sword,  or  indeed  at  any  of  the  military  exercises,  he  is  un- 
assuming, and  has  no  particle  of  pride  or  arrogance.  It  is  for 
all  these  things  that  he  is  liked,  and  the  friendship  of  D'Au- 
busson has  naught  whatever  to  do  with  it.  It  is  not  only 
D'Aubusson  who  has  prophesied  that  he  will  rise  to  a  dis- 
tinguished rank  in  the  Order.  Boswell  and  Ricord  both  said 
the  same,  and  I  for  one  thoroughly  believe  it.  Is  there  one 
among  us  under  the  age  of  twenty — and  I  might  go  farther — 
who  has  already  won  such  credit  for  himself?  One  who  when 
but  sixteen  can  make  his  mark  in  an  Order  like  ours  is  certain 
to  rise  to  high  office,  and  you  and  I  may,  before  many  years 
are  over,  be  proud  to  serve  under  him." 

"That  I  will  never  do,"  Rivers  said  fiercely.  "I  would 
rather  go  and  bury  myself  for  life  in  the  smallest  commandery 
in  England." 


KNIGHTED  109 

"  That  may  be,"  Harcourt  retorted,  his  temper  also  roused. 
"  But  possibly  you  might  prefer  that  to  fighting  under  any 
other  leader. ' ' 

"  That  is  a  reflection  on  my  courage,  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt. 
I  shall  lay  this  matter  before  the  bailiff." 

"You  can  do  as  you  like,"  Harcourt  said  disdainfully. 
"  But  I  don't  think  you  will  benefit  by  your  pains." 

When  his  temper  cooled  down  Rivers  acknowledged  to  him- 
self the  truth  of  what  Harcourt  said.  He  was  not  in  the  fa- 
vour of  the  bailiff,  while  both  Harcourt  and  Tresham  stood  at 
the  present  moment  high  in  his  estimation.  Any  complaint 
would  lead  to  an  inquiry  into  the  matter  that  had  led  to  the 
former's  words,  and  even  if  Harcourt  were  reprimanded  for 
using  them,  he  himself  would  assuredly  not  gain  in  the  esti- 
mation of  the  knights.  Harcourt  himself  thought  no  more  of 
the  matter,  though  he  laughingly  told  Gervaise  that  Rivers  was 
by  no  means  gratified  at  their  both  attaining  the  honour  of  sec- 
ular knighthood,  which  virtually  placed  them  over  his  head. 

"  He  is  not  a  nice  fellow,"  Gervaise  said.  "  But  naturally 
it  must  be  galling  to  him,  and  to  a  good  many  others  who 
have  not  yet  had  the  chance  of  distinguishing  themselves.  I 
think  it  is  very  good  of  them  that  they  are  all  so  kind  and  cor- 
dial. Of  course  it  is  otherwise  with  you,  who  are  as  old  as  most 
of  the  other  professed  knights  serving  here  ;  but  with  me  it  is 
quite  different,  and  as  Rivers,  somehow,  has  never  been  very 
friendly  with  me,  of  course  it  is  doubly  galling  to  him.  I  hope 
he  will  soon  get  an  opportunity  of  winning  his  spurs  too." 

"  That  is  just  like  you,  Tresham.  If  I  were  in  your  place,  I 
should  have  no  good  wishes  for  a  fellow  who  has  never  lost  an 
opportunity  of  annoying  me,  and  that  without  the  smallest 
cause  of  offence  on  my  part." 

"  I  am  sure  you  would  not  wish  him  ill,  Harcourt.  You 
would  make  allowance  for  him  just  as  I  do,  and  feel  that  if 
he  had  had  the  same  opportunities  he  would  have  obtained  the 
same  credit  and  honours." 


A  KXIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

CHAPTER  VH 

A    FIRST  GOMMAMD 


T1 


1HE  far  news  tint  the  knights  heard  oo  their  return  from 
tbeir  expedition  was  that  the  Grand  Master  Omni  was 
L  and  that,  at  has  advanced  age,  the  doctns  feared 
tLtoare  was  little  hope  of  his  rallying.  Gervaise  felt  a  keen  re- 
gret oa  hearing  dot  the  kind  and  gentle  old  man,  who  had 
been  for  three  yearns  his  master,  was  at  the  point  of  death. 
XeveinEbefcsK-  itt  was  generally  felt  among  die  knights  that,  in 
view  of  thedangeis  dot  threatened  Rhodes,  it  was  for  the  good 
of  the  Order  dot  a  strong  and  capable  man,  whom  all  re- 
spected, amd  who  possessed  their  entire  confidence,  should  at 
scads  at  time  be  invested  with  absolute  power. 

D"  AmbiBsson  had,  frHfeuHl,  for  some  years  been  ri*«*  real  In^d 
of  die  wmnmnhyB  but  cicrjr  question  had,  if  only  as  a  matter 
of  form,  to  be  referred  to  die  grand  master,  in  order  to  obtain 
tas  apptutal  and  signature.  In  die  state  of  feebleness  to 
which  he  bad  for  some  momtibs  past  fallen,  much  time  was  fre- 
quendy  lost  before  he  could  be  made  to  understand  die  ques- 
tions icfcucd  to  him.  Moreover,  orders  of  D"  Anbusson  could 
be  appealed  against,  his  views  thwarted,  and  his  authority 
questioned  ;  and  it  was  therefore  felt  that,  much  as  they  all 
respected  die  old  grand  master,  it  would  be  an  advantage  to 
the  Order  when  die  supreme  authority  passed  into  die  hands 
of  D"  Ambusson. 

Foonr  days  after  die  return  of  die  expedition  Orsini  died. 

A  few  homes  later  the  grand  council  was  convened,  and 
D" Aubnsson  urn  ••iiiMliin'j  flfil^dl  grand  master  of  the  Order. 
The  ceremony  of  the  funeral  of  his  predecessor  was  an  impos- 
ing oce.  Every  knight  of  the  Order  in  Rhodes  was  present, 
together  with  a  number  of  the  leading  natives  of  the  Island ; 


A  TOST  OOMttASrD  111 

and  although  Gervaise  had,  since  his  arrival  on  the  Wand, 
seen  many  state! j  ceremonies,  this  far  surpassed  anything  he 
had  previously  beheld. 

GervaEe  had,  at  one  of  his  fin*  interviews  with  D*  Anbusson 
after  his  arrival  at  the  Island,  been  advised  by  him  to  acquire 
knowledge  of  Turkish. 


"  There  are  but  few  Icnights  of  the  Order  who  speak  the  lan- 
guage/' he  said.  "  As  a  rule,  while  young  men  are  ready  to 
devote  any  amount  of  time  to  acquiring  dexterity  in  all  mar- 
tial exercises,  they  will  bestow  no  labour  in  obtaining  knowl- 
edge that  may  be  fuHy  as  fffffffl  to  them  as  skill  in  arms.  In 
our  dealings  with  the  Turks,  one  or  other  party  has  to  employ 
an  interpreter,  and  it  is  often  by  no  «IMI»K  certain  that  these 
men  convey  the  full  meaning  of  the  speeches  they  translate. 
Again,  we  have  large  numbers  of  Turkish  slaves,  and  it  is 
highly  to  be  desired  that  the  Jmighty  should  be  able  to  give 
their  orders  to  these  men  in  their  own  language.  Lastly,  a 
knight  who  has  been  taken  prisoner  by  the  Turks — and  even 
the  biavest  might  meet  with  such  a  misfortune — would  find  it  an 
alleviation  of  his  lot,  and  might  be  able  to  plan  and  carry  out  his 
escape,  did  he  speak  Turkish  weft.  I  should  strongly  counsel 
yon  to  acquire  a  knowledge  of  the  tongue." 

Gervaise  had  intended  to  follow  die  advice  of  die  grand 
prior,  but  the  duties  of  his  office  as  page,  and  the  time  required 
for  his  military  exercises  and  his  studies  with  the  rhaphhi, 
had  rendered  it  well-nigh  impossible,  during  the  first  three 
yeais,  to  turn  his  attention  to  learning  Turkish.  As  soon  as 
his  pageship  was  at  an  end,  and  he  found  that  his  duties  in- 
cluded supervision  of  Turkish  slaves,  he  felt  the  want  of  a 
knowledge  of  die  language,  and  from  that  time  devoted  an 
hour  a  day  to  its  study,  employing  one  of  the  servants  of  the 
attbfrgt,  who  was  a  man  of  rank  and  education  at  home,  to 
instinct  him. 

While  he  conscientiously  spent  this  amount  of  time  at  the 
work,  it  was  die  most  disagreeable  portion  of  tins  day's 


112  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

labour.  The  events,  however,  that  had  taken  place  during  the 
expedition  had  impressed  him  greatly  with  the  utility  of  a 
knowledge  of  Turkish,  for  had  it  not  been  for  Sir  John  Bos- 
well's  possessing  some  acquaintance  with  the  language,  it 
would  have  been  impossible  to  communicate  with  the  rowers 
of  their  boat,  or  to  have  arranged  the  plan  by  which  they  had 
escaped  the  pirates.  He  had  then  and  there  determined  that 
as  soon  as  he  returned  to  Rhodes  he  would  take  the  matter  up 
in  a  very  different  spirit  to  that  in  which  he  before  approached 
it.  He  had  on  the  way  home  spoken  to  Sir  John,  who  had 
highly  approved  of  the  determination. 

"  I  myself,  when  I  was  a  young  knight  of  eighteen,  was 
taken  captive,  twenty-six  years  ago,  at  the  time  when  the 
Egyptian  fleet  appeared  before  Rhodes.  Our  galleys  advanced 
to  attack  them,  but  under  cover  of  night  they  retired,  and 
proceeding  to  the  mainland  took  shelter  under  the  guns  of  a 
Turkish  fort.  We  attacked  them  there ;  it  was  a  desperate  en- 
gagement, but  without  any  decisive  advantage  on  either  side. 
We  lost  no  less  than  sixty  knights,  the  Egyptians  seven  hundred 
men  ;  and  their  fleet  returned  to  Egypt.  I  and  three  others 
who  were  left  wounded  on  the  deck  of  one  of  their  ships  we 
had  boarded,  but  failed  to  capture,  were  carried  to  Egypt,  and 
remained  there  captive  for  six  months,  when  we  were  ran- 
somed by  the  Order. 

"  During  that  time  I  learnt  enough  of  their  language,  which 
is  akin  to  Turkish,  to  be  able  to  make  myself  understood  and 
to  understand  what  was  said  to  me.  I  have  kept  up  that 
much  for  intercourse  with  the  slaves  and  servants  at  Rhodes, 
and  have  found  it  very  useful.  I  consider,  then,  that  you  will 
do  well  to  acquire  their  tongue ;  it  will  be  useful  not  only  to 
yourself,  but  to  others,  and  when  we  get  back  I  will,  if  you 
like,  ask  the  bailiff  to  free  you  from  all  duty  in  order  that  you 
may  devote  yourself  to  it." 

The  head  of  the  langue  at  once  granted  Sir  John's  request. 

"I  would,"   he  said,   "that  more  of  our  young  knights 


A    FIRST    COMMAND  113 

would  give  a  portion  of  their  time  to  study ;  but  most  of  them 
look  to  returning  home  when  their  term  of  service  here  has 
expired.  Many  think  only  of  amusement,  and  all  imagine 
that  advancement  is  best  achieved  by  valour.  Tresham  has 
already  distinguished  himself  very  greatly ;  so  much  so,  that  I 
think  it  would  be  well  if  he  did  not  go  on  another  expedition 
for  a  time,  but  stayed  here  while  others  have  the  opportunity 
of  doing  the  same.  Were  we  to  send  him  out  with  the  next 
galleys  that  start,  I  should  be  accused  of  favouritism,  and  the 
lad,  who  is  now  deservedly  popular  with  all,  would  be  regarded 
with  envy,  and  possibly  even  with  dislike. 

< '  At  the  same  time,  after  what  he  has  done  I  should  have 
difficulty  in  refusing,  were  he  to  volunteer  to  sail  in  the  next 
galley  that  sets  out.  The  desire,  then,  on  his  part  to  learn 
Turkish  is  in  all  ways  opportune.  It  will,  too,  in  the  long 
run  be  of  great  advantage  to  him  in  the  Order,  will  give  him 
weight,  and  bring  him  into  prominence.  I  do  not  think 
there  are  six  in  the  Order  who  can  fairly  translate  a  Turkish 
document ;  there  are  but  two  who  could  write  a  reply  in  the 
same  language.  Inform  him,  then,  that  from  the  present 
time  he  will  be  excused  from  all  work,  except,  of  course,  to 
join  in  ceremonials  when  all  are  required  to  be  present ;  and 
if  you,  Sir  John,  will  pick  out  from  among  the  servitors  here 
one  who  is  well  instructed  and  educated,  and  capable  of  writ- 
ing as  well  as  reading  his  language,  I  will  similarly  relieve  him 
of  all  other  work,  and  place  him  at  the  disposal  of  young 
Tresham.  Tell  the  lad  that  I  hope  he  will  persevere  until  he 
obtains  a  complete  knowledge  of  the  tongue.  You  can  men- 
tion to  him  what  I  have  said  as  to  my  opinion  of  the  advan- 
tage the  knowledge  of  it  will  be  to  him  in  the  Order." 

Gervaise  accordingly  devoted  himself  to  study.  His  in- 
structor was  a  Turk  of  fine  presence.  He  had  been  a  large 
landowner  in  Syria,  and  held  a  high  official  position  in  the 
province,  but  had  been  captured  in  a  galley  on  his  way  to 
Constantinople,  whither  he  was  proceeding  on  an  official  mis- 


114  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

sion.  He  was  delighted  with  his  new  post.  Gervaise,  both 
as  the  youngest  member  of  the  community,  and  from  the  kind 
manner  in  which  he  always  spoke  to  the  servants, — all  of  whom 
had  acquired  some  knowledge  of  English, — was  a  general 
favourite  among  them,  and  the  Turk  was  glad  that  he  was  to 
be  thrown  with  him.  Still  more  he  rejoiced  at  being  appointed 
his  instructor,  as  it  relieved  him  from  all  menial  work  which, 
although  preferable  to  that  to  which  the  bulk  of  the  slaves  were 
condemned,  yet  galled  his  spirit  infinitely. 

Now  that  he  had  entered  upon  the  work  with  the  approba- 
tion of  his  superior,  and  a  conviction  of  its  great  utility,  Ger- 
vaise set  to  work  with  the  same  zeal  and  ardour  which  he  had 
exhibited  in  his  military  exercises.  During  the  heat  of  the 
day  he  sat  in  the  shade  reading  and  writing  with  his  instructor. 
In  the  cool  of  the  morning  and  afternoon  he  walked  with  him 
on  the  walls,  or  in  the  country  beyond  them.  After  sunset 
he  sat  with  him  in  an  unfrequented  corner  of  the  roof,  all  the 
time  conversing  with  him,  either  of  his  own  country,  or  that 
of  his  instructor. 

At  first  this  was  difficult,  and  he  had  to  eke  out  the  Turkish 
words  he  had  acquired  with  English;  but  it  was  not  long 
before  there  was  no  necessity  for  this.  His  intercourse  for 
ten  or  twelve  hours  a  day  with  this  Turk,  and  the  pains  taken 
by  his  instructor,  caused  him  to  acquire  the  language  with  ex- 
treme rapidity.  Of  course,  he  had  to  put  up  with  a  great  deal 
of  banter  from  the  younger  knights  upon  his  passion  for  study. 
Sometimes  they  pretended  that  his  mania,  as  they  considered 
it,  arose  from  the  fact  that  he  was  determined  to  become  a 
renegade,  and  was  fitting  himself  for  a  high  position  in  the 
Turkish  army.  At  other  times  they  insisted  that  his  intention 
was  to  become  a  Turkish  dervish,  or  to  win  a  great  Turkish 
heiress  and  settle  in  Syria.  But  as  he  always  bore  their  banter 
good-temperedly,  and  was  ready  occasionally  to  join  them  in 
the  sport  when  assaults-at-arms  were  carried  on,  they  soon  be- 
came tired  of  making  fun  of  him. 


A    FIRST    COMMAND  115 

After  nine  months'  constant  work,  the  young  knight's  studies 
were  abruptly  stopped  by  the  receipt  of  a  letter  from  the  Pasha 
of  Syria,  offering  a  considerable  sum  for  the  ransom  of  his  in- 
structor. The  request  was  at  once  acceded  to,  as  it  was  the 
policy  of  the  knights  to  accept  ransoms  for  their  prisoners,  both 
because  the  sums  so  gained  were  useful,  and  because  they  were 
themselves  compelled  sometimes  to  pay  ransom  for  members 
of  the  Order.  Suleiman  Ali  was,  it  was  arranged,  to  be  put 
on  board  an  Egyptian  craft  bound  for  Acre,  a  safe-conduct 
having  been  sent  for  the  vessel  and  her  crew,  and  for  a  knight, 
who  was  to  receive  the  ransom  from  the  pasha. 

"  At  any  rate,  Sir  Gervaise,"  the  Turk  said,  when  the  young 
knight  expressed  great  regret  at  his  leaving  them,  "  our  position 
as  instructor  and  pupil  would  have  come  to  an  end  shortly. 
For  the  last  three  months  there  has  been  but  little  teaching 
between  us ;  we  have  talked,  and  that  has  been  all,  save  that 
for  a  short  time  each  day  you  read  and  wrote.  But  there  has 
been  little  to  teach.  You  speak  the  native  language  now  as 
fluently  as  I  do,  and  would  pass  anywhere  as  a  Syrian,  espe- 
cially as  there  are  slight  differences  of  speech  in  the  various 
provinces.  I  believe  that  in  Syria  you  would  not  be  sus- 
pected of  being  anything  but  a  native,  and  assuredly  you 
would  be  taken  for  a  Syrian  elsewhere.  You  have  learnt 
enough,  and  it  would  be  but  a  waste  of  time  for  you,  a  knight 
and  a  soldier,  to  spend  another  day  in  study." 

On  the  following  day  Gervaise  was,  to  his  surprise,  sent  for 
by  the  grand  master.  Except  on  the  occasion  of  a  few  public 
ceremonies,  he  had  not  seen  D'Aubusson  since  he  had  been 
elected  to  his  present  high  dignity,  and  the  summons  to  attend 
at  the  palace  therefore  came  unexpectedly. 

"  We  have  become  quite  strangers,  Tresham,"  the  grand 
master  said  cordially  when  he  entered.  "  I  have  not  forgotten 
you,  and  have  several  times  questioned  your  bailiff  concerning 
you.  He  tells  me  that  you  have  become  quite  an  anchorite, 
and  that,  save  at  your  meals  and  for  an  occasional  bout-at- 


116  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE    CROSS 

arms,  you  are  seldom  to  be  seen.  I  was  glad  to  hear  of  your 
devotion  to  study,  and  thought  it  better  to  leave  you  undis- 
turbed at  it.  Yesterday  evening  I  sent  for  your  instructor. 
He  is  a  man  of  influence  in  Syria,  and  I  wished  to  learn  how 
he  was  affected  towards  us,  now  that  he  is  about  to  return 
there.  We  talked  for  some  time,  and  I  then  asked  him  what 
progress  you  had  made,  and  was  surprised  and  pleased  to  find 
that  in  his  opinion  you  could  pass  anywhere  as  a  native,  and 
that  you  were  perfectly  capable  of  drawing  up  and  writing  any 
document  I  might  desire  to  send  to  the  sultan  or  any  of  his 
generals.  This  is  far  more  than  I  had  expected,  and  shows 
how  earnestly  you  must  have  worked.  Your  knowledge  may 
prove  of  much  assistance  to  the  Order,  and  believe  me,  the 
time  you  have  spent  in  acquiring  it  may  prove  of  much  greater 
advantage  to  you  in  your  career  than  if  you  had  occupied  it 
in  performing  even  the  most  valiant  deeds,  and  that  at  some 
future  time  it  will  ensure  your  appointment  to  a  responsible 
office  here.  It  was  partly  to  assure  you  of  my  approbation 
that  I  sent  for  you,  partly  to  inform  you  that  I  have  appointed 
you  to  proceed  with  Suleiman  Ali  as  the  knight  in  charge  of 
the  vessel,  and  to  receive  the  ransom  agreed  on,  upon  your 
handing  him  over.  The  office  is  an  honourable  one  and  one 
of  trust,  and  it  is  the  first-fruits  of  the  advantages  you  will 
gain  by  your  knowledge  of  Turkish.  No,  do  not  thank  me. 
I  am  selecting  you  because  you  are  better  fitted  than  any 
knight  I  can  spare  for  the  mission,  and  also,  I  may  say,  be- 
cause the  choice  will  be  pleasing  to  Suleiman  Ali,  whose  good- 
will I  am  desirous  of  gaining.  Before  now  Turkish  provinces 
have  thrown  off  their  allegiance  to  the  sultan.  They  have,  I 
must  admit,  been  usually  re-conquered,  but  such  might  not 
be  always  the  case  ;  and  if  such  an  event  happened  in  Syria, 
this  man's  influence  and  goodwill  might  be  of  great  advantage 
to  us,  as  it  might  well  suit  us  to  ally  ourselves  with  Syria 
against  Constantinople.  I  am  glad  to  say  that  I  found  him  at 
least  as  well  disposed  as  any  man  could  be  who  had  been  some 


A   FIRST   COMMAND  117 

years  in  slavery.  He  admitted  that,  for  a  slave,  he  had  been 
kindly  and  gently  treated,  and  added  that  any  unpleasant 
memories  he  might  have  retained  had  been  obliterated  by  the 
nine  months  of  pleasant  companionship  spent  with  you." 

When  Gervaise  returned  to  dinner  at  the  auberge,  and  in- 
formed Ralph  Harcourt  and  the  other  young  knights  that  he 
had  been  appointed  to  take  charge  of  the  vessel  in  which  Su- 
leiman Ali  was  to  be  conveyed  to  Acre,  the  statement  was  at 
first  received  with  incredulity.  It  seemed  incredible  that  the 
youngest  knight  in  the  langue  should  be  chosen  for  such  a  mis- 
sion, involving  as  it  did  a  separate  command.  Even  the  older 
knights,  when  the  news  was  passed  down  the  table,  were  sur- 
prised. 

"  I  must  say  that  I  am  astonished  at  the  grand  master's 
choice.  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham  doubtless  distinguished  himself 
greatly  some  months  since,  but  from  that  time  he  has  not  been 
out  with  the  galleys,  or,  indeed,  done  anything  that  would 
seem  to  recommend  him  for  so  marked  a  favour  as  a  separate 
command." 

"I  don't  know,  Wingate,"  Sir  John  Boswell  said.  "It 
seems  to  me  that  when  a  young  knight  of  seventeen  eschews 
all  pleasure,  refrains  from  volunteering  for  service  at  sea,  and 
spends  his  whole  time  in  study,  he  does  distinguish  himself,  and 
that  very  greatly.  Of  the  three  or  four  hundred  young  knights 
here  I  doubt  if  one  other  would  have  so  acted.  Certainly, 
none  to  my  knowledge  have  done  so.  Yet  I  do  not  suppose 
that  D'Aubusson  selected  him  for  this  duty  as  a  reward  for  so 
much  self-denial  and  study,  but  because  by  that  self-denial 
and  study  he  is  more  fitted  for  it  than  any  of  us  here,  save 
some  three  or  four  knights  in  the  other  langues,  all  of  whom 
are  in  too  high  a  position  to  be  employed  in  so  unimportant  a 
duty.  He  can  speak  Turkish — not  a  few  score  of  words  and 
sentences  such  as  I  can,  but,  as  Suleiman  Ali  tells  me,  like  a 
native.  Were  one  of  us  chosen  for  this  mission,  it  would  be 
necessary  to  send  an  interpreter  with  him ;  and  every  one 


118  A   KNIGHT  OF  THE   WHITE   CROSS 

knows  how  hard  it  is  to  do  business  in  that  manner.  It  seems 
to  me  that  the  grand  master  has  acted  wisely  in  putting  aside 
all  question  of  seniority,  and  employing  the  knight  who  is  bet- 
ter suited  than  any  other  for  it. ' ' 

"  You  are  right,  Boswell,"  the  bailiff  said.  '•'  I  really  have 
been  astonished  at  the  manner  in  which  Tresham  has  given 
himself  up  to  study.  It  would  have  been  a  natural  thing  had 
he,  after  gaining  so  much  credit,  been  anxious  and  eager  to 
gain  more.  When  you  spoke  to  me  about  his  determination 
to  learn  Turkish,  I  thought  he  would  speedily  tire  of  it,  and 
that  when  the  next  galley  sailed,  his  name  would  be  among 
the  list  of  volunteers  for  the  service.  I  am  sure,  comrades,  that 
there  are  few,  if  any,  among  us  who  would  not  infinitely  prefer 
fighting  the  Moslems  to  spending  our  whole  time  in  learning 
their  language ;  and  I  for  one  consider  the  fact  that  he  has  for 
nine  months  laboured  so  incessantly  and  assiduously  that  he 
has  come,  as  Boswell  says,  to  speak  it  like  a  native,  is  even 
more  to  his  credit  than  the  deed  for  which  he  was  knighted." 

This  conversation  took  place  at  the  upper  end  of  the  table, 
an4  was  not  heard  at  the  lower  end  where  the  younger  knights 
were  seated. 

"  I  am  not  chosen  from  favour,"  Gervaise  said  hotly,  to  one 
of  his  companions  who  had  asserted  that  this  was  so.  "I  am 
simply  chosen  because  I  can  speak  Turkish." 

' '  How  much  Turkish  can  you  speak  ?  ' '  one  of  them  laughed. 

Gervaise  turned  to  the  Turkish  servant  behind  them,  and 
said,  in  his  language, — 

"  Hassan,  Sir  Giles  Trevor  wishes  to  know  how  well  I  speak 
Turkish.  You  have  heard  me  talking  with  Suleiman  Ali. 
Will  you  give  him  your  opinion  about  it  ?  " 

The  man  turned  gravely  to  Sir  Giles  Trevor. 

"  My  lord,"  he  said,  in  English,  "  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham,  he 
speaks  Turkish  same  as  I  do.  .If  he  dress  up  in  Turk  clothes  i 
suppose  him  Turk,  not  know  he  Christian  by  his  speech." 

Exclamations  of  surprise  broke  from  the  young  knights. 


A   FIRST  COMMAND  119 

"  Well,  you  have  earned  the  appointment,  Tresham,"  Ralph 
Harcourt  said  heartily.  "You  always  told  me  when  I  asked 
you  that  you  were  getting  on,  but  I  had  not  the  least  idea  that 
you  were  getting  on  like  this.  And  can  you  read  and  write 
the  Turkish  language  ?  ' ' 

< '  Well  enough  for  practical  purposes,  Ralph.  At  any  rate, 
I  wrote  a  complimentary  letter  this  morning  from  the  grand 
master  to  the  governor  of  Syria,  and  the  bailiff  of  Spain,  who 
was,  as  you  know,  for  ten  years  a  prisoner  among  the  Turks, 
read  it  through  at  D'Aubusson's  request,  to  see  that  there  was 
no  error  in  it,  and  was  good  enough  to  pass  it  without  altera- 
tion." 

"  I  would  give  a  good  deal,"  Sir  Giles  Trevor  said,  "  if  I 
could  follow  your  example,  and  shut  myself  up  for  nine  months 
with  an  infidel  to  study  his  language ;  but  I  could  not  do  it 
if  my  life  depended  on  it.  I  should  throw  myself  off  the  wall 
at  the  end  of  the  first  fortnight. ' ' 

"  I  don't  pretend  that  I  can  do  what  Tresham  has  done," 
Ralph  Harcourt  said.  "  I  always  hated  our  lessons  with  the 
chaplain,  who  gave  me  the  character  of  having  the  thickest 
head  of  any  of  his  pupils ;  but  I  vow ' ' — and  he  kissed  the  han- 
dle of  his  dagger — ' '  I  will  spend  half  an  hour  a  day  in  trying 
to  learn  something  of  Turkish.  Of  course,  I  know  that  such 
time  will  not  be  enough  to  learn  a  great  deal ;  but  if  one  could 
get  up  just  enough  to  be  able  to  give  orders  to  the  slaves,  to 
question  the  captain  of  a  vessel  one  has  captured,  and  to  make 
them  understand  a  little,  if  by  bad  luck  one  fell  into  their 
hands,  it  would  be  quite  enough  for  me.  I  am  sure  sometimes 
one  is  quite  at  a  loss  how  to  pass  the  hours  when  the  sun  is  at 
its  hottest,  and  if  cne  tried  one  ought  to  be  able  to  pick  up  a 
little  without  much  trouble.  Look  at  the  servants ;  there  is 
not  one  of  them  but  speaks  a  little  English.  And  if  an  infidel 
can  learn  enough  English  to  get  on  with,  without  any  regular 
study,  I  can't  see  why  we  shouldn't  be  able  to  learn  enough 
Turkish  in  the  same  way." 


120  A    KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE   CROSS 

Two  or  three  of  the  other  young  knights  declared  that  they 
too  would  devote  a  short  time  during  the  heat  of  the  day  to 
learning  Turkish,  and  they  agreed  to  begin  together  forthwith 
with  one  of  the  servants,  who  spoke  English  most  fluently. 
Robert  Rivers  was  not  present,  for  he  had  returned  to  Eng- 
land six  months  before,  to  take  up  his  residence  at  the  House 
in  Clerkenwell,  in  order  that  he  might  bring  to  bear  the  in- 
terest of  his  many  powerful  friends  to  secure  for  him  an  ap- 
pointment as  commander  of  one  of  the  estates  of  the  Order 
in  England.  His  departure  had  caused  general  satisfaction 
among  the  other  knights,  whom  his  arrogance  and  ill-temper 
had  frequently  irritated.  Gervaise  especially  was  glad  at  his 
leaving  the  Island,  for  after  he  received  the  honour  of  knight- 
hood, Rivers  made  a  point  of  always  addressing  him  with  an 
affectation  of  deference  and  respect  that  often  tried  his  temper 
to  the  utmost. 

"It  is  well  that  Rivers  has  gone,"  Ralph  said,  laughing, 
"  for  I  don't  know  how  he  would  have  supported  the  chagrin 
your  appointment  would  have  given  him.  He  was  devoured 
with  jealousy  as  it  was,  but  this  would  have  been  a  trial  beyond 
bearing." 

"I  am  heartily  glad  he  has  gone, ' '  Gervaise  said  gravely. 
"  I  have  put  up  with  a  great  deal  from  him,  but  I  don't  think  I 
could  have  stood  much  more.  If  our  vows  had  not  forbidden 
our  fighting  I  should  have  called  him  to  account  long  ago ;  but 
the  only  thing  else  to  do  was  for  me  to  lodge  a  formal  com- 
plaint before  the  bailiff,  of  his  continually  offensive  bearing 
and  manner,  which  I  could  not  bring  myself  to  do,  and  indeed 
there  was  no  special  matter  that  would  have  seemed  to  justify 
me,  no  single  speech  that  in  itself  would  warrant  such  grave 
action  on  my  part.  I  used  to  wish  over  and  over  again  that  we 
could  but  meet  in  some  quiet  spot  in  England,  both  unarmed, 
and  could  there  settle  the  matter  in  good  English  fashion,  with 
our  fists,  or  even  with  a  couple  of  quarterstaffs. " 

The  others  laughed. 


A  FIRST   COMMAND  121 

"  That  would  be  a  very  unknightly  form  of  contest." 

"  I  care  not  for  that,"  Gervaise  replied.  "  It  would  be  a 
very  satisfactory  one  anyhow,  and  quite  serious  enough  for  the 
occasion.  His  sneers  and  petty  insults  were  not  sufficient  to 
justify  the  drawing  of  blood,  and  there  has  been  enough  of  that 
shed  for  the  last  twenty  years  in  England  without  two  brother 
knights  betaking  themselves  to  their  swords  against  each  other. 
But  a  sound  thrashing  would  have  done  neither  of  us  harm, 
and  if  it  had  fallen  to  his  lot  to  get  the  largest  share  of  it,  it 
might  have  done  him  some  good." 

"  He  thinks  he  is  sure  of  an  appointment,"  one  of  the  others 
said,  "  but  he  has  been  so  frequently  in  trouble  here  that  it  is 
likely  that  the  official  report,  which  is  always  sent  home  to  the 
grand  prior  when  the  knights  return  to  England,  will  be  so 
unfavourable  that  even  the  most  powerful  influence  will  fail  to 
obtain  him  a  post.  If  so,  we  may  have  him  back  here  again, 
especially  if  the  Turks  carry  out  their  threat  of  assailing  us,  for 
an  appeal  will  be  made  to  all  the  grand  priors  for  knights  to 
aid  in  the  defence." 

That  evening  Gervaise  went  again  to  the  palace  to  receive 
final  instructions. 

"  The  craft  in  which  you  are  to  travel  is  an  Egyptian 
trader.  As  at  present  war  has  not  been  formally  declared  be- 
tween us  and  the  sultan,  peaceful  traders,  as  you  know,  carry 
on  their  avocations  unmolested  either  by  the  war -ships  of  the 
Turks  or  by  ours ;  they  do  not  enter  our  ports  without  a  spe- 
cial permit,  and  the  crews  are  never  allowed  to  land,  in  order 
that  no  detailed  account  of  our  fortifications  may  be  taken  to 
the  sultan.  Moreover,  brawls  might  arise  between  them  and 
the  native  population,  or  they  might  aid  slaves  to  escape. 
However,  you  will  be  altogether  safe  from  interference  from 
Turkish  war-vessels,  and  if  overhauled  by  one  of  them  the 
safe-conduct  will  be  sufficient  to  prevent  interference  with  you. 
But  it  is  not  so  with  pirates.  They  will  plunder  their  own 
countrymen  as  readily  as  they  will  Christians,  and  the  safe- 


122  A   KNIGHT  OF  THE   WHITE  CROSS 

guard  of  the  governor  of  Syria  will  be  of  no  use  whatever  to 
you.  In  this  consists  the  danger  of  your  mission.  I  cannot 
send  one  of  our  war -galleys  on  such  an  errand,  and  if  there  are 
not  enough  knights  on  board  to  beat  off  any  pirate,  the  fewer 
there  are  the  better.  I  hear  that  the  craft  is  a  fast  sailer,  and 
as  the  crew  will  be  as  anxious  to  avoid  pirates  as  you,  they  will 
do  their  best  to  escape.  I  leave  it  to  you  to  take  any  route. 
You  can  either  sail  hence  direct  for  Acre,  or  you  can  coast 
along  the  shores  of  Anatolia  and  Syria,  lying  up  at  night  in 
bays. 

"  Should  you  be  overtaken  I  do  not  think  it  would  be  of 
any  use  for  you  to  disguise  yourself,  for  some  of  the  crew 
would  be  sure  to  denounce  you.  Should  the  worst  happen, 
and  you  are  captured  by  pirates,  you  will  of  course  in  the  first 
place  show  them  your  safe-conduct,  and  if  I  find  that  you  do 
not  return  I  shall  send  at  once  to  the  governor  of  Syria,  com- 
plaining of  your  capture  when  furnished  with  his  safeguard, 
and  requesting  him  to  order  a  search  for  you  to  be  made  at 
every  port  on  the  coast,  with  instructions  that  you  are  to  be  at 
once  released,  and  either  sent  to  him  for  return  hither,  or 
placed  on  board  a  craft  bound  for  any  Christian  port ;  while 
you,  on  your  part,  will  endeavour  to  acquaint  the  Turkish  au- 
thorities with  the  fact  that  you  have  been  seized  while  travel- 
ling with  a  safe-conduct  from  the  governor  of  Syria. 

"  But,  more  than  from  any  efforts  on  your  part  or  mine,  I 
rely  upon  Suleiman  Ali,  who  will,  I  am  sure,  as  soon  as  he  is 
set  on  shore,  lose  no  time  in  acquainting  the  pasha  of  your 
capture,  and  in  calling  upon  him  to  interfere  in  your  favour. 
In  that  case,  the  worst  that  could  befall  you  would  be  a  tem- 
porary detention,  unless,  indeed,  the  pirates  should  take  you 
to  Egypt.  As  that  country  is  friendly  with  us  at  present, 
since  Egypt  dreads  the  ever-increasing  power  of  the  Turks,  it 
will  be  but  a  question  of  ransom,  for  I  have  secret  agents  there 
who  will  inform  me  without  delay  of  the  arrival  of  a  Christian 
captive." 


A   FIRST   COMMAND  123 

"  I  understand,  sir,  and  will  do  my  best  in  the  matter.  If 
I  am  captured  I  trust  that  an  opportunity  of  escape  will  soon 
present  itself,  for  I  should,  if  taken,  conceal  from  my  captors 
the  fact  that  I  understand  their  language,  and  should  thus,  if 
I  could  evade  my  guard,  have  every  chance  of  escaping,  as  in 
a  native  dress  I  could  meet  and  converse  with  those  hunting 
for  me,  without  their  having  a  suspicion  of  my  being  the  white 
slave  for  whom  they  were  in  search." 

"  Once  at  Acre  you  will  be  safe.  But  do  not  land  unless 
it  is  absolutely  necessary,  for  you  might  fall  a  victim  to  the 
fanaticism  of  its  inhabitants,  and  no  knight  has  ever  set  foot 
on  shore  there  since  the  ill-fated  day  when  the  Moslems  wrested 
it  from  us,  bathed  the  ruined  walls  with  the  best  blood  of  our 
Order  and  the  Templars',  and  destroyed  the  last  hope  of  our 
ever  recovering  the  Holy  Sepulchre." 

The  next  morning  at  daybreak  Gervaise  and  Suleiman  AH 
went  on  board  the  Egyptian  trader,  and  sailed  for  Acre.  The 
current  of  opinion  had  changed  at  the  auberge  when  the 
knights  came  to  think  over  the  mission  on  which  Gervaise  was 
about  to  start,  and  the  slight  feeling  of  jealousy  with  which 
the  younger  knights  had  received  the  news  was  entirely  dissi- 
pated. While  it  did  not  seem  to  them  that  there  was  any 
chance  of  his  distinguishing  himself,  they  perceived,  as  they 
thought  it  over,  the  considerable  danger  there  was  of  capture 
by  pirates,  and  Ralph  and  some  of  his  companions  came  down 
to  the  mole  to  see  him  off,  with  feelings  in  which  envy  bore  no 
part  whatever. 

' '  I  see  now,  Gervaise,  that  it  is  truly  no  holiday  excursion 
on  which  you  are  starting.  I  should  envy  you  greatly  were 
you  going  in  command  of  an  armed  galley,  prepared  to  beat 
off  any  craft  that  might  try  to  overhaul  you  ;  but,  going  alone 
as  you  are,  it  is  a  very  different  thing.  Should  pirates  meet 
you,  you  could  offer  no  resistance,  and  your  position  would 
be  a  perilous  one  indeed.  However,  I  think  you  are  born  to 
good  luck,  and  am  confident  that  your  patron  saint  will  look 


124  A   KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

after  you,  and  therefore  expect  to  see  you  back  here  in  a 
fortnight's  time  at  the  outside." 

' '  I  hope  so  with  all  my  heart,  Ralph.  It  will  be  no  fault 
of  mine  if  I  tarry." 

"  Will  you  keep  the  open  sea,  or  skirt  the  land,  Tresham  ?  " 
one  of  the  others  asked. 

"  I  shall  keep  the  open  sea.  The  grand  master  left  me  to 
choose  my  course ;  but  I  think  there  is  more  danger  by  the 
coast — where  pirates  may  be  hiding  in  unfrequented  bays,  in 
readiness  to  pounce  upon  a  passing  craft — than  in  the  open 
sea,  where  we  should  have  at  least  the  advantage  that  we  could 
not  be  taken  by  surprise,  and  might  make  a  race  of  it.  But 
the  sun  will  be  up  in  a  few  minutes,  and  my  orders  were  to  set 
out  at  sunrise,  so  I  must  say  good-bye  at  once." 

As  soon  as  the  vessel  was  under  way,  Gervaise  took  a  seat 
on  the  poop  by  the  side  of  Suleiman  Ali,  and  related  to  him 
the  conversation  he  had  had  with  the  grand  master. 

"  The  risk  that  you  will  run  has  not  escaped  me,"  the  Turk 
said,  "  and  indeed,  I  now  regret  that  you  were  chosen  as  my 
escort.  I  almost  wish  that  my  son  had  not  purchased  my  free- 
dom at  the  present  time,  since  it  involves  the  risk  of  you  los- 
ing yours.  There  is  no  doubt  that  the  sea  swarms  with  pirates  ; 
the  sultan  is  too  busy  with  his  own  struggles  for  Empire  to 
bestow  any  attention  upon  so  small  a  matter.  The  pashas  and 
the  officers  of  the  ports  have  not  the  power,  even  had  they  the 
will,  to  put  dowji  piracy  in  their  districts,  and  indeed  are,  as 
often  as  not,  participators  in  the  spoils.  Your  Order,  which, 
years  back,  scoured  the  seas  so  hotly  that  piracy  well-nigh 
ceased,  have  now  for  forty  years  been  obliged  to  turn  their 
attention  chiefly  to  their  own  defence.  They  possess  a  com- 
paratively small  fleet  of  galleys,  and  th'eir  wealth  is  expended 
on  their  fortress. 

"  What  with  Egypt  and  the  sultan  their  hands  are  too  full 
for  them  to  act  as  the  police  of  the  sea,  and  the  consequence  is 
that  from  every  port,  bay,  and  inlet,  pirate  craft  set  out — some 


A   FIRST   COMMAND  125 

mere  row-boats,  some,  like  those  under  the  command  of  Has- 
san All,  veritable  fleets.  Thus  the  humblest  coasters  and  the 
largest  merchant  craft  go  alike  in  fear  of  them,  and  I  would 
that  the  sultan  and  Egypt  and  your  Order  would  for  two  or 
three  years  put  aside  their  differences,  and  confine  their  efforts 
to  sweeping  the  seas  of  these  pests,  to  storming  their  strong- 
holds, and  to  inflicting  such  punishment  upon  them  as  that, 
for  a  very  long  time  to  come,  peaceful  merchants  might  carry 
on  their  trade  without  fear. 

"  I  heard  you  tell  the  captain  that  he  was  to  steer  straight 
for  Acre,  and  I  think  you  are  right  in  avoiding  the  coast, 
where  the  most  harmless-looking  fishing  boat  may  carry  a 
crowd  of  pirates  hidden  in  her  hold.  At  the  same  time,  if  you 
will  take  my  advice  you  will  head  much  more  to  the  south,  so 
as  to  be  out  of  the  regular  track  of  ships  making  from  Con- 
stantinople or  the  islands  to  Acre.  You  may  meet  pirates 
anywhere,  but  they  are  assuredly  thicker  along  the  more  fre- 
quented routes.  The  safest  plan  of  all  would  probably  be  to 
bear  south,  and  strike  the  Egyptian  coast  well  to  the  east  of 
the  mouth  of  the  Nile.  Thence,  till  you  get  to  Palestine,  the 
country  is  utterly  barren  and  uninhabited,  while,  running  up 
the  coast  to  Palestine,  there  are,  save  at  Jaffa,  no  ports  to 
speak  of  until  you  arrive  at  Acre ;  and  besides,  the  inhabi- 
tants there,  even  if  pirates,  would  not  venture  to  disregard  the 
pasha's  safe-conduct.  I  do  not  by  any  means  say  that  such  a 
course  would  be  absolutely  safe.  You  may  meet  with  vessels 
on  your  way  south,  and  doubtless  some  of  them  cruise  off  the 
barren  coast  I  speak  of,  to  intercept  traders  to  and  from  Egypt 
and  Acre,  and  other  Syrian  ports  ;  for  the  trade  carried  on  is 
considerable,  and,  although  of  the  same  religion,  the  Turks 
are  disposed  to  view  the  Egyptians  as  enemies  rather  than  as 
friends,  and  would  have  even  less  hesitation  in  plundering 
them  than  in  robbing  their  own  countrymen." 

"  I  think  that  your  suggestion  is  a  good  one,  and  will  fol- 
low it,  at  any  rate.  The  course  is  a  good  deal  longer,  but 


126  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

that  is  comparatively  of  little  moment.     The  great  thing  is  to 
carry  you  safely  to  Acre." 

"And  to  get  back  with  equal  safety,"  Suleiman  said,  with 
a  smile.  "  That  is  quite  as  important  in  my  eyes ;  in  fact,  of 
the  two,  I  would  far  rather  that  we  were  captured  on  our 
voyage  thither,  for  in  that  case  I  might  be  able  to  arrange  for 
the  ransom  of  both  of  us. " 


CHAPTER  VIII 

AN   EVENING   AT   RHODES 

OULEIMAN  ALI'S  advice  was  carried  out.  It  added  con- 
O  siderably  to  the  length  of  the  voyage  ;  but  they  saw  only 
one  doubtful  craft.  She  was  lying  close  inshore  under  the 
shadow  of  the  sand-hills,  and  they  did  not  see  her  until  she 
hoisted  her  sails  and  shot  out  from  the  land.  They  were, 
however,  three  miles  distant  from  the  land  at  the  time,  and 
the  wind  was  blowing  from  the  north ;  consequently  the  pirate 
was  dead  to  leeward.  Every  sail  was  set  at  once  on  board  the 
trader,  and,  being  a  fast  sailer,  she  maintained  her  position 
until. nightfall.  The  wind  then  dropped,  and  just  as  the  light 
faded  they  could  see  that  the  vessel  behind  them  had  put  out 
her  sweeps.  The  trader  kept  up  her  sails  until  certain  that 
she  could  be  no  longer  seen ;  then  the  canvas  was  lowered, 
and  the  crew  took  to  the  boats  and  towed  her  due  north. 

The  night  was  fortunately  a  dark  one,  and  those  watching 
anxiously  From  the  deck  of  the  trader  were  unable  to  discern 
her  pursuer  as  she  passed  behind  them.  As  soon  as  they  were 
well  assured  that  she  must  have  gone  on,  the  boats  were  got 
in,  the  sails  hoisted  again,  and,  taking  advantage  of  every 
light  flaw  of  wind,  they  proceeded  on  their  course.  In  the 
morning  the  sails  of  the  galley  could  be  seen  on  the  horizon. 


AN    EVENING    AT   RHODES  127 

but  the  distance  was  too  great  for  her  to  take  up  the  pursuit 
again  with  any  chance  of  success,  and  the  trader  continued 
her  course  to  Acre  without  seeing  more  of  her. 

As  soon  as  the  trader  entered  the  port,  the  Egyptian  captain 
went  on  shore,  taking  with  him  a  copy  of  the  safe-conduct  and 
the  letter  from  the  grand  master  to  the  pasha.  Going  to  the 
residence  of  the  governor,  he  handed  these  to  him,  saying 
that  he  had  on  board  Aga  Suleiman  Ali,  and  a  knight  who 
was  charged  to  deliver  him  up  on  payment  of  the  ransom. 

"I  have  been  expecting  you,"  the  governor  said.  "I 
have  received  a  letter  from  the  pasha,  stating  that  he  had  writ- 
ten to  the  grand  master  respecting  the  ransom  of  the  aga,  and 
sending  me  the  amount  which  Suleiman's  son  had  offered. 
The  young  man  was  not  of  age  when  his  father  was  captured, 
but  he  is  so  now,  and  was  therefore  able  to  raise  the  sum  re- 
quired. I  will  go  down  to  the  port  with  you  myself,  hand 
over  the  ransom,  and  welcome  Suleiman,  whom  I  knew  well, 
back  from  his  captivity." 

The  transfer  was  speedily  made  ;  a  heavy  purse  was  handed 
to  Gervaise,  and  Suleiman  was  a  free  man. 

"  Send  me  word,  if  you  can,  when  you  return  to  Rhodes," 
the  latter  said,  as  he  bade  farewell  to  the  young  knight.  "  I 
shall  be  anxious  until  I  hear.  Fortune  was  with  us  as  we 
sailed  hither,  but  it  may  desert  you  on  your  return.  Should 
aught  befall  you,  tell  your  captors  that  if  they  bring  you  to  me 
I  will  pay  any  ransom  that  they  could,  in  fairness,  require. 
Should  they  refuse  to  do  this,  send,  if  possible,  a  messenger  to 
me,  and  on  receipt  of  your  message  I  will  send  a  trusty  man  to 
purchase  your  freedom.  You  have  treated  me  as  a  friend  and 
an  equal,  and  a  friend  I  shall  always  remain." 

The  vessel  was  to  remain  four  days  in  port,  to  discharge  her 
cargo  and  take  in  another,  and  Suleiman  had  talked  of  remain- 
ing at  Acre  until  she  sailed,  but  Gervaise  protested  strongly 
against  this. 

f '  You  have  your  family,  from  whom  you  have  been  so  long 


128  A    KNIGHT    OF   THE   WHITE    CROSS 

separated,  awaiting  your  return  with  anxiety,  and  I  pray  you 
to  make  no  stay  on  my  account.  I  am  well  content  to  remain 
on  board  here,  and  to  look  at  the  city  which  has  so  often  been 
the  theatre  of  great  deeds — which  Richard  the  Lion-heart  capt- 
ured, and  which  so  many  of  the  Hospitallers  died  to  defend. 
I  was  charged  by  the  grand  master  not  to  land,  and  indeed  I 
feel  myself  that  it  would  be  an  act  of  folly  to  do  so.  There 
are  doubtless  many  on  shore  who  have  relatives  and  friends 
now  working  as  slaves  among  us,  and  some  of  these  might  well 
seek  to  avenge  them  by  slaying  one  of  the  Order.  I  feel  your 
kindness,  but  it  would  be  a  pain  to  me  to  know  that  you  were 
lingering  here  on  my  account,  when  you  must  be  longing  to 
embrace  your  children." 

The  four  days  passed  rapidly.  Gervaise  had,  at  the  sugges- 
tion of  the  governor,  laid  aside  the  mantle  and  insignia  of  the 
Order. 

"If  you  do  not  do  so,"  he  said,  "  I  must  place  a  strong 
guard  of  soldiers  on  board,  in  order  to  ensure  that  the  pasha's 
safeguard  is  not  violated.  Sailors  are  a  turbulent  race,  and  were 
you  recognised  here  they  might  make  a  tumult,  and  slay  you 
before  a  word  of  what  was  going  on  reached  me.  In  any  case 
I  shall  place  two  soldiers  on  board  until  you  leave  the  port. ' ' 

On  the  morning  of  the  fifth  day  the  sails  were  got  up,  and 
the  vessel  sailed  out  from  the  port.  Fortune  again  favoured 
them,  and  they  reached  Rhodes  without  any  adventure.  Ger- 
vaise went  at  once  to  the  palace,  and  handed  over  the  purse 
of  gold  to  the  treasurer.  He  then  sent  up  his  name  to  the 
grand  master,  and  was  immediately  conducted  to  his  room. 

"  I  am  glad  to  see  you  back,  Tresham.  I  have  been  uneasy 
about  you.  Have  you  fulfilled  your  mission  without  ad- 
venture? " 

"Without  any  adventure,  sir,  save  that  we  were  once  chased 
by  a  pirate  on  our  way  east,  but  escaped  in  the  darkness. 
Save  for  that,  the  voyage  has  been  wholly  uneventful.  I  have 
received  the  ransom,  and  handed  the  purse  to  your  treasurer. ' ' 


AN    EVENING    AT    RHODES  129 

"  I  am  glad  that  your  first  command  has  turned  out  so  well. 
I  will  see  that  you  do  not  lack  employment ;  and  the  fact  that 
you  are  able  to  act  as  interpreter  will  ensure  you  a  welcome  on 
any  galley.  At  present,  however,  it  is  not  my  intention  to 
send  out  many  cruisers.  Every  life  now  is  precious,  and  no 
amount  of  spoil  that  can  be  brought  in  will  counter-balance  the 
loss  of  those  who  fall.  However,  I  may  find  some  mission  on 
which  you  can  be  employed.  I  know  that  you  love  an  active 
life  ;  and  as,  for  nine  months,  you  have  put  a  rein  on  your  in- 
clinations, and  have  devoted  yourself  wholly  to  study,  so  that 
you  might  be  of  greater  use  to  the  Order,  you  have  a  good  right 
to  any  employment  in  which  your  knowledge  can  be  utilised." 

On  his  arrival  at  the  auberge,  Gervaise  was  very  heartily 
greeted  by  the  younger  knights. 

"I  told  you  you  were  born  lucky,  Gervaise,"  Ralph  Har- 
court  said.  "  There  has  been  more  than  one  wager  made  that 
you  would  be  captured ;  but  I,  for  my  part,  was  confident  that 
your  good  fortune  would  not  desert  you.  Still,  though  not 
surprised,  we  are  delighted  to  see  you  again.  Now  tell  us 
about  your  voyage. ' ' 

Gervaise  gave  a  brief  account  of  the  adventure  with  the  pi- 
rate, and  then  described  the  visit  of  the  governor  to  the  ship. 

"  Did  he  say  anything  to  you  ?  " 

"  He  was  courteous  and  solemn ;  just  the  sort  of  man  you 
would  fancy  a  Turkish  governor  should  be.  He  looked  a  little 
surprised  when  I  accosted  him  in  Turkish,  but  asked  no  ques- 
tions at  the  time,  though  I  daresay  he  inquired  afterwards  of 
Suleiman  how  I  came  to  speak  the  language.  The  only  time 
he  actually  said  anything  was  when  he  requested  that  I  would 
not  wear  the  mantle  of  the  Order  while  in  port,  as  sailors  were 
a  turbulent  race,  and  it  might  lead  to  an  attack  upon  me  ;  and 
as  he  was  responsible  to  the  pasha  that  his  safe-conduct  should 
be  respected,  it  would  be  necessary,  if  I  declined  to  follow  his 
advice,  to  keep  a  strong  body  of  soldiers  on  board.  As  this 
would  have  been  a  horrible  nuisance,  especially  as  I  wanted  to 


130  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

enjoy  in  quiet  the  view  of  the  city,  with  its  castle  and  walls,  I 
acceded  at  once  to  his  request,  which  seemed  to  me  a  reason- 
able one.  He  did  send  two  soldiers  on  board,  but  they  re- 
mained down  in  the  waist,  and  did  not  interfere  with  my 
pleasure  in  any  way. ' ' 

"Next  to  Jerusalem,  how  I  should  like  to  see  Acre!" 
Ralph  Harcourt  exclaimed.  "  It  is,  of  all  other  cities,  the 
most  closely  connected  with  our  Order.  We  helped  to  win  it, 
and  we  were  the  last  to  defend  it.  We  have  heard  so  much 
about  the  fortress,  and  it  has  been  so  often  described  to  me, 
that  I  know  the  situation  of  every  bastion — at  least,  as  it  was 
when  we  left  it,  though  I  know  not  what  changes  the  Turks 
may  since  have  made. " 

"  That  I  know  not,  Ralph.  Of  course,  I  only  saw  the  sea- 
front,  and  it  was  upon  the  land  side  that  the  attack  was  made. 
We  know  that  the  breaches  were  all  repaired  long  ago,  and  it 
is  said  that  the  place  is  stronger  than  ever.  From  the  port  all 
was  solid  and  massive.  It  is  indeed  a  grand  and  stately  for- 
tress. Here  we  have  done  all  that  was  possible  to  make  Rhodes 
impregnable,  but  nature  did  nothing  for  us ;  there  nature  has 
done  everything,  and  the  castle  looks  as  if  it  could  defy  the 
assaults  of  an  army,  however  large.  And  indeed,  it  was  not 
wrested  from  us  by  force.  The  knights,  when  the  city  walls 
were  stormed  and  the  town  filled  with  their  foes  fought  their 
way  down  to  the  water's  edge  and  embarked  there,  for  they 
were  reduced  to  a  mere  handful ;  and  however  strong  a  castle 
may  be,  it  needs  hands  to  defend  it.  Still,  it  well-nigh  moved 
me  to  tears  to  see  the  Turkish  banner  waving  over  it,  and  to 
think  how  many  tens  of  thousands  of  Christian  soldiers  had  died 
in  the  effort  to  retain  the  holy  places,  and  had  died  in  vain." 

"  I  wonder  whether  the  Turks  will  ever  be  forced  to  relin- 
quish their  hold  of  the  holy  places  ?  ' ' 

"  Who  can  tell,  Sir  Giles  ?  "  the  bailiff,  who  had  come  up  to 
the  group  unobserved,  said  quietly.  "  Certainly  not  in  our 
time — not  until  the  Moslem  power,  which  threatens  not  only 


AN    EVENING    AT    RHODES  131 

us,  but  all  Europe,  has  crumbled  to  dust.  So  long  as  Acre 
remains  in  their  power  there  is  no  hope.  I  say  not  but  that 
by  a  mighty  effort  of  all  Christendom,  Palestine  might  be 
wrested  from  the  infidels,  as  it  was  wrested  before ;  but  the 
past  shows  us  that  while  men  or  nations  can  be  stirred  to  en- 
thusiasm for  a  time,  the  fire  does  not  last  long,  and  once  again 
the  faithful  few  would  be  overwhelmed  by  the  odds  that  would 
be  brought  against  them,  while  Europe  looked  on  impassive, 
if  not  indifferent.  No,  knights ;  the  utmost  that  can  be  hoped 
for,  is  that  the  tide  of  Moslem  invasion  westward  may  be 
stayed.  At  present  we  are  the  bulwark,  and  as  long  as  the 
standard  of  our  Order  waves  over  Rhodes  so  long  is  Europe 
safe  by  sea.  But  I  foresee  that  this  cannot  last :  the  strongest 
defences,  the  stoutest  hearts,  and  the  bravest  of  hearts,  cannot 
in  the  long  run  prevail  against  overpowering  numbers.  As  at 
Acre,  we  may  repel  assault  after  assault,  we  may  cause  army 
after  army  to  betake  themselves  again  to  their  ships ;  but, 
as  a  rock  is  overwhelmed  by  the  rising  tide,  so  must  Rhodes 
succumb  at  last,  if  left  by  Europe  to  bear  alone  the  brunt  of  Mos- 
lem invasion.  All  that  men  can  do  we  shall  do.  As  long  as  it  is 
possible  to  resist,  we  shall  resist.  When  further  resistance  be- 
comes impossible,  we  shall,  I  trust,  act  as  we  did  before. 

"  We  were  driven  from  Palestine,  only  to  fortify  ourselves  at 
Rhodes.  If  we  are  driven  from  Rhodes,  we  shall,  I  feel  assured, 
find  a  home  elsewhere,  and  again  commence  our  labours.  The 
nearer  we  are  to  Europe  the  more  hope  there  is  that  Christendom 
will  aid  us,  for  they  will  more  generally  understand  that  our 
defeat  would  mean  the  laying  open  of  the  shores  of  the  Medi- 
terranean, from  Turkey  to  Gibraltar,  to  the  invasion  of  the 
Moslems.  However,  comrades,  this  is  all  in  the  future.  Our 
share  is  but  in  the  present,  and  I  trust  the  flag  of  the  Order 
will  float  over  Rhodes  as  long,  at  least,  as  the  lifetime  of  the 
youngest  of  us,  and  that  we  may  bequeath  the  duty  of  up- 
holding the  Cross  untarnished  to  those  who  come  after  us  ;  and 
we  can  then  leave  the  issue  in  God's  hands." 


132  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

All  listened  respectfully  to  the  words  of  their  leader,  although 
his  opinion  fell  like  cold  water  upon  the  fiery  zeal  and  high 
hopes  of  his  hearers.  The  possibility  of  their  losing  Rhodes 
had  never  once  entered  into  the  minds  of  the  majority  of  them. 
It  was  likely  that  ere  long  they  might  be  called  upon  to  stand 
a  siege,  but,  acquainted  as  they  were  with  the  strength  of  the 
place — its  deep  and  seemingly  impassable  moat,  its  massive 
walls,  and  protecting  towers  and  bastions — it  had  seemed  to 
them  that  Rhodes  was  capable  of  withstanding  all  assaults,  how- 
ever numerous  the  foe,  however  oft-repeated  the  invasion.  The 
bailiff  was,  as  all  knew,  a  man  of  dauntless  courage,  of  wide 
experience  and  great  judgment,  and  that  he  should  believe  that 
Rhodes  would,  although  not  in  their  time,  inevitably  fall, 
brought  home  to  them  for  the  first  time  the  fact  that  their  for- 
tress was  but  an  outpost  of  Europe,  and  one  placed  so  distant 
from  it  that  Christendom,  in  the  hour  of  peril,  might  be  unable 
to  furnish  them  with  aid. 

As  the  bailiff  walked  away,  there  was  silence  for  a  short 
time,  and  then  Sir  Giles  Trevor  said  cheerfully, — 

"  Well,  if  it  lasts  our  time  we  need  not  trouble  our  heads  as 
to  what  will  take  place  afterwards.  As  the  bailiff  says,  our 
duty  is  with  the  present,  and  as  we  all  mean  to  drive  the  Turks 
back  when  they  come,  I  do  not  see  that  there  is  any  occasion 
for  us  to  take  it  to  heart,  even  if  it  be  fated  that  the  Moslems 
shall  one  day  walk  over  our  tombs.  If  Christendom  chooses 
to  be  supine,  Jet  Christendom  surfer,  say  I.  At  any  rate,  I  am 
not  going  to  weep  for  what  may  take  place  after  I  am  turned 
into  dust." 

"  That  sounds  all  very  well,  Sir  Giles,"  Ralph  Harcourt  said, 
''and  I  have  no  argument  to  advance  against  it,  though  I  am 
sure  there  is  much  to  be  said  ;  but  if  the  bailiff,  ^r  the  chap- 
lain, or  indeed  any  of  the  elders,  had  heard  you  sdy  so,  I  have 
no  doubt  you  would  have  had  a  fitting  reply. ' ' 

Sir  Giles  tossed  his  head  mockingly.  ' '  I  shall  fight  neither 
better  nor  worse,  friend  Harcourt,  because  it  may  be  that  some 


AN    EVENING   AT   RHODES  133 

day  the  Moslems  are,  as  the  bailiff  seems  to  think,  destined  to 
lord  it  here.  I  have  only  promised  and  vowed  to  do  my  best 
against  the  Moslems,  and  that  vow  only  holds  good  as  long  as  I 
am  in  the  flesh ;  beyond  that  I  have  no  concern.  But  what  are 
we  staying  here  for,  wasting  our  time  ?  It  is  the  hour  for  those 
of  us  who  are  going,  to  be  starting  for  the  ball  given  by  Signor 
Succhi ;  as  he  is  one  of  the  richest  merchants  in  the  town,  it 
will  be  a  gay  one,  and  there  is  no  lack  of  fair  faces  in  Rhodes. 
It  is  a  grievous  pity  that  our  elders  all  set  their  will  against  even 
the  younger  members  of  the  community  joining  in  a  dance. 
It  was  not  one  of  the  things  I  swore  to  give  up.  However, 
here  in  Rhodes  there  is  no  flying  in  the  face  of  rules. ' ' 

Three  or  four  of  the  other  young  knights  were  also  going. 

"What  are  you  thinking  of  doing,  Gervaise?"  Har  court 
asked. 

"  I  have  nothing  particular  to  do,  Ralph,  except  that,  first 
of  all,  I  must  write  a  letter  to  Suleiman  Ali  and  hand  it  to  the 
bailiff,  praying  him  to  send  it  off  by  the  first  vessel  that  may 
put  in  here  on  her  way  to  Acre.  If  I  do  not  do  it  now  it 
may  be  neglected,  and  I  promised  to  write  directly  I  got  here. 
I  will  not  be  half  an  hour,  and  after  that  I  shall  be  ready  to 
do  anything  you  like." 

In  less  than  that  time,  indeed,  he  rejoined  Ralph.  "  Now 
what  shall  we  do  with  ourselves  ?  What  do  you  say  to  a  stroll 
through  the  streets  ?  I  am  never  tired  of  that. ' ' 

"  I  like  better  to  go  by  way  of  the  roofs,  Gervaise.  The 
streets  are  badly  lit,  and  although  they  are  busy  enough  in 
some  quarters,  they  are  so  narrow  that  one  gets  jostled  and 
pushed.  On  the  terraces  everything  is  quiet.  You  have  plenty 
of  light  and  music,  and  it  is  pleasant  to  see  families  sitting 
together  and  enjoying  themselves  ;  and  if  one  is  disposed  for 
a  cup  of  wine  or  of  cool  sherbet,  they  are  delighted  to  give  it, 
for  they  all  are  pleased  when  one  of  us  joins  a  group.  I  have 
quite  a  number  of  acquaintances  I  have  made  in  this  way 
while  you  have  been  working  away  at  your  Turkish." 


134  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"Very  well,"  Gervaise  said.  "If  such  is  your  fancy, 
Ralph,  let  us  take  one  of  the  paths  across  the  roofs.  I  might 
walk  there  twenty  years  by  myself  without  making  an  ac- 
quaintance, and  I  do  not  pledge  myself  to  join  in  these  inti- 
macies of  yours.  However,  I  shall  be  quite  content  to  amuse 
myself  by  looking  on  at  the  scene  in  general,  while  you  are 
paying  your  visits  and  drinking  your  sherbet." 

"  There  are  plenty  of  fair  girls  among  the  Rhodians," 
Ralph  said,  with  a  smile;  "and  though  we  are  pledged  to 
celibacy  we  are  in  no  way  bound  to  abstain  from  admiration." 

Gervaise  laughed. 

"  Admire  as  much  as  you  like,  Ralph,  but  do  not  expect 
me  to  do  so.  I  have  scarcely  as  much  as  spoken  to  a  woman 
since  I  entered  the  House  in  London,  and  I  should  have  no 
idea  what  to  say  to  a  young  girl. ' ' 

"  But  it  is  part  of  the  education  of  a  true  knight  to  be 
courteous  to  women.  It  is  one  of  the  great  duties  of  chivalry. 
And  you  must  remember  that  we  are  secular  knights,  as  well 
as  knights  of  the  Order. ' ' 

"  The  work  of  the  Order  is  quite  sufficient  for  me  at  pres- 
ent, Ralph.  In  time  I  may  come  to  like  the  society  of  women, 
to  admire  their  beauty,  and  possibly  even  to  wear  the  colour 
of  some  one,  for  that  seems  to  be  the  fashion  ;  though  why  we, 
who  are  bound  to  celibacy,  should  admire  one  woman  more 
than  another  I  cannot  understand." 

They  had  by  this  time  descended  from  the  castle,  and  were 
taking  their  way  along  one  of  the  broad  paths  that  led  over  the 
flat  roofs  of  the  houses  by  means  of  the  bridges  thrown  across 
the  streets. 

"These  are  some  acquaintances  of  mine,"  Ralph  said, 
stopping  at  one  of  the  walls,  some  three  feet  high,  that  bor- 
dered the  path. 

Beyond  was  an  enclosure  of  some  fifty  feet  square.  Clumps 
of  shrubs  and  flowers,  surrounded  by  stonework  some  eight  or 
ten  inches  high  enclosing  the  earth  in  which  they  grew,  were 


A  GIRL  WAS   PLAYING  A   LUTE,   AND   ANOTHER   SINGING  TO  HER 
ACCOMPANIMENT. 


AN    EVENING    AT   RHODES  135 

scattered  here  and  there.  Lamps  were  hung  to  cords  stretched 
above  it,  while  others  were  arranged  among  the  flowers.  In  the 
centre  a  large  carpet  was  spread,  and  on  this  some  eight  or  ten 
persons  were  seated  on  cushions.  A  girl  was  playing  a  lute, 
and  another  singing  to  her  accompaniment.  She  stopped 
abruptly  when  her  eye  fell  upon  the  figures  of  the  two  young 
knights. 

' '  There  is  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt,  father  !  ' '  she  exclaimed  in 
Italian,  which  was  the  language  most  used  on  the  Island,  and 
was  spoken  with  more  or  less  fluency  by  all  the  knights, 
among  whom  it  served  as  a  general  medium  of  communication. 
"  Are  you  waiting  to  be  invited  in,  Sir  Knight?"  she  went 
on  saucily.  "  I  thought  that  by  this  time  you  would  know 
you  were  welcome. ' ' 

"  Your  tongue  runs  too  fast,  child,"  her  father  said,  as  he 
rose  and  walked  across  to  Ralph.  "You  are  welcome,  Sir 
Ralph,  very  welcome.  I  pray  you  enter  and  join  us." 

"  I  will  do  so  with  pleasure,  Signor  Vrados,  if  you  will  also 
extend  your  hospitality  to  my  friend  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham." 

"  Most  gladly,"  the  merchant  said.    "  I  pray  him  to  enter." 

The  two  knights  passed  through  the  gate  in  the  wall.  All 
rose  to  their  feet  as  they  went  up  to  the  carpet,  and  greeted 
Ralph  with  a  warmth  which  showed  that  he  was  a  favourite. 
He  introduced  Gervaise  to  them. 

"  I  wonder  that  I  do  not  know  your  face,  Sir  Knight,"  the 
merchant's  wife  said.  "  I  thought  I  knew  all  the  knights  of 
the  Order  by  sight,  from  seeing  them  either  at  the  public  cere- 
monies, or  observing  them  pass  in  the  streets." 

"  For  the  last  nine  months  Sir  Gervaise  has  been  an  ancho- 
rite. He  has  been  learning  Turkish,  and  has  so  devoted  him- 
self to  the  study  that  even  I  have  scarce  caught  sight  of  him, 
save  at  meals.  As  for  walking  in  the  streets,  it  is  the  last  thing 
he  would  think  of  doing.  I  consider  myself  a  good  and  con- 
scientious young  knight,  but  I  am  as  nothing  in  that  respect 
to  my  friend.  I  used  to  look  upon  him  as  my  little  brother, 


136  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

for  we  were  at  the  House  of  the  Order  in  London  together. 
He  is  four  years  younger  than  I  am,  and  you  know  four  years 
between  boys  makes  an  immense  difference.  Now  the  tables 
are  turned,  and  I  quite  look  up  to  him." 

"  You  will  believe  as  much  as  you  like,  Signora,  of  what 
Sir  Ralph  says,"  Gervaise  laughed.  "  As  you  have,  he  says, 
known  him  for  some  time,  you  must  by  this  time  have  learnt 
that  his  word  is  not  to  be  taken  literally." 

"  We  learned  that  quite  early  in  our  acquaintance,"  the  girl 
who  had  first  noticed  them  said,  with  an  affectation  of  grav- 
ity. "  I  always  tell  him  that  I  cannot  believe  anything  he 
says,  and  I  am  grateful  to  you,  Sir  Knight,  for  having  thus 
borne  evidence  to  the  quickness  of  my  perception." 

By  this  time  the  servants  had  brought  some  more  cushions, 
and  on  these  Ralph  and  Gervaise  seated  themselves.  Wine, 
sherbet,  and  cakes,  were  then  handed  round.  The  master  of 
the  house  placed  Gervaise  on  his  right  hand,  as  a  stranger. 

"You  have  been  among  our  islands,  Sir  Gervaise?  But 
indeed,  I  need  not  ask  that,  since  I  know  that  you  and  Sir 
Ralph  were  knighted  together  for  your  valour  in  that  affair 
with  the  ships  of  Hassan  AH.  We  come  from  Lesbos.  It  is 
now  eighty  years  since  my  family  settled  in  Rhodes,  and  we 
have  seen  it  grow  from  a  small  place  to  a  great  fortress." 

"  'Tis  a  wonderful  place,"  Gervaise  said.  "  I  know  noth- 
ing of  the  fortresses  of  Europe,  but  it  seems  to  me  that  no  other 
can  well  be  stronger  than  this — that  is,  among  places  with  no 
natural  advantages." 

"  The  knights  have  always  had  an  abundance  of  slaves," 
the  merchant  said  ;  "  so  many  that  they  have  not  only  had 
sufficient  for  their  work  here,  but  have  been  able  to  sell  num- 
bers to  European  potentates.  Yes,  Rhodes  is  wonderfully 
strong.  That  great  fosse  would  seem  as  if  it  could  defy  the 
efforts  of  an  army  to  cross  ;  and  yet  the  past  has  shown  that 
even  the  strongest  defences,  held  with  the  greatest  bravery,  can 
be  carried  by  generals  with  immense  armies,  and  careless  how 


AN    EVENING    AT    RHODES  137 

they  sacrifice  them  so  that  they  do  but  succeed.  Look  at  Acre, 
for  example." 

"  I  was  looking  at  it  five  days  ago,"  Gervaise  said,  "  and 
thinking  that  it  was  beyond  the  might  of  man  to  take." 

"Do  you  mean  that  you  were  at  Acre?"  the  merchant 
asked,  with  surprise. 

"  Yes.  I  went  there  to  hand  over  a  captive  who  had  been 
ransomed.  Of  course  I  had  a  safe-conduct,  and  I  was  glad 
indeed  of  the  opportunity  of  seeing  so  famous  a  fortress." 

"  You  were  fortunate  indeed,  Sir  Knight,  and  it  was,  if  you 
will  pardon  my  saying  so,  singular  that  so  young  a  knight  should 
have  been  chosen.  Assuredly,  even  the  senior  knights  of  the 
Order  would  rejoice  at  the  opportunity  of  beholding  a  fortress 
so  intimately  connected  with  the  past  history  of  the  Order. ' ' 

"  It  was  due  entirely  to  my  being  able  to  speak  Turkish," 
Gervaise  said.  "As  my  friend  Sir  Ralph  was  mentioning,  I 
have  been  studying  hard,  and  can  now  speak  the  language  flu- 
ently ;  and  as  this  was  a  necessity  on  such  a  mission,  and  the 
few  knights  who  can  so  speak  it  are  all  in  high  office,  and 
could  hardly  be  asked  to  undertake  so  unimportant  a  service, 
I  was  selected. ' ' 

"  And  you  really  speak  Turkish  well?  It  is  an  accomplish- 
ment that  few,  save  Greeks  subject  to  Turkey,  possess.  Do 
you  intend,  may  I  ask,  to  make  Rhodes  your  home?  I  ask 
because  I  suppose  you  would  not  have  taken  this  labour  had 
you  intended  shortly  to  return  to  England." 

"  Yes ;  I  hope  to  remain  here  permanently.  I  know  that  the 
first  step  towards  promotion  here  is  generally  a  commandery  at 
home,  but  I  did  not  enter  the  Order  with  any  idea  of  gaining 
office  or  dignity.  I  desire  simply  to  be  a  knight  of  the  Cross, 
and  to  spend  my  life  in  doing  faithful  service  to  the  Order." 

"  A  worthy  ambition  indeed,  and  one  that,  so  far  as  my 
experience  goes,  very  few  knights  entertain.  I  see  yearly 
scores  of  young  knights  depart,  no  small  proportion  of  whom 
never  place  foot  on  Rhodes  again,  although  doubtless  many  of 


138  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

them  will  hasten  back  again  as  soon  as  the  danger  of  an  assault 
from  the  Turks  becomes  imminent.  You  see,  we  who  dwell 
here  under  the  protection  of  the  Order  naturally  talk  over  these 
things  among  ourselves;  and  although,  in  the  matter  of  forti- 
fications, all  will  admit  that  enormous  efforts  have  been  made 
to  render  the  town  secure,  it  is  clear  that  in  the  matter  of 
knights  to  defend  them  there  is  very  much  left  to  be  desired.  It 
is  all  very  well  to  say  that  the  knights  from  all  parts  of  Europe 
would  flock  hither  to  defend  it ;  but  the  journey  would  be  a 
long  one,  and  would  occupy  much  time,  and  they  would  prob- 
ably not  receive  news  that  the  Turks  had  sailed  until  the 
place  was  already  invested.  Then  it  would  be  difficult,  if  not 
altogether  impossible,  for  ships  with  reinforcements  to  make 
their  way  through  the  Turkish  fleet,  and  to  enter  the  port.  To 
man  the  walls  properly  would  need  a  force  five  times  as  numer- 
ous as  that  which  is  now  here.  I  recognise  the  valour  of  your 
knights;  they  have  accomplished  wonders.  But  even  they 
cannot  accomplish  impossibilities.  For  a  time  they  could 
hold  the  walls ;  but  as  their  number  became  reduced  by  the 
fire  of  the  Turkish  cannon  and  the  battles  at  the  breaches,  they 
would  at  last  be  too  weak  any  longer  to  repel  the  onslaughts 
of  foes  with  an  almost  unlimited  supply  of  soldiers." 

"  That  is  true  enough,"  Gervaise  admitted;  "  and  to  my 
mind  it  is  shocking  that  four-fifths  at  least  of  the  Order,  pledged 
to  oppose  the  infidels,  should  be  occupied  with  the  inglorious 
work  of  looking  after  the  manors  and  estates  of  the  society 
throughout  Europe,  while  one-fifth,  at  most,  are  here  perform- 
ing the  duties  to  which  all  are  sworn.  Of  the  revenues  of  the 
estates  themselves,  a  mere  fraction  finds  its  way  hither.  Still, 
I  trust  that  the  greater  part  of  the  knights  will  hasten  here  as 
soon  as  danger  becomes  imminent,  without  waiting  for  the 
news  that  the  Turkish  armament  has  actually  set  forth. ' ' 

For  an  hour  the  two  young  knights  remained  on  the  roof,  Ger- 
vaise talking  quietly  with  the  merchant,  while  his  companion 
laughed  and  chatted  with  the  ladies  and  friends  of  their  host. 


AN    EVENING   AT   RHODES  139 

After  they  had  left,  with  the  promise  that  it  would  not  be 
long  before  they  repeated  their  visit,  Ralph  bantered  Gervaise  on 
preferring  the  society  of  the  merchant  to  that  of  his  daughters. 

"  I  found  him  a  pleasant  and  very  well-informed  man, 
Ralph,  and  enjoyed  my  talk  with  him  just  as  you  enjoyed 
talking  nonsense  to  his  daughters  and  listening  to  their  songs. 
Who  was  the  man  sitting  next  to  the  eldest  daughter?  " 

"  He  doesn't  belong  to  Rhodes,  but  is  a  Greek  from  one  of 
the  islands,  though  I  did  not  catch  from  which.  I  don't  know 
whether  he  is  a  relative  of  the  family,  or  a  business  connection 
of  the  merchant's,  or  a  stranger  who  has  brought  a  letter  of 
introduction  to  him.  Nothing  was  said  on  that  head  ;  why  do 
you  ask  ?  ' ' 

"  I  don't  like  the  man's  face ;  he  is  a  handsome  fellow,  but 
has  a  crafty  expression.  He  did  not  say  much,  but  it  seemed 
to  me  that  at  times,  when  he  appeared  to  be  sitting  carelessly 
sipping  his  sherbet,  he  was  really  trying  to  listen  to  what 
Vrados  was  saying  to  me.  He  could  not  do  so,  for  we  were 
on  the  other  side  of  the  circle,  and  were  speaking  in  somewhat 
low  tones,  while  the  rest  of  you  were  chatting  and  laughing. " 

"  What  should  he  want  to  listen  for,  most  sapient  knight?  " 

"  That  I  can't  tell,  Ralph;  but  I  am  certain  that  he  was 
trying  to  listen." 

"Well,  as  you  were  no  doubt  both  talking  more  sensibly 
than  most  of  us,"  Ralph  laughed,  "he  certainly  showed  his 
discernment. ' ' 

"  I  daresay  I  am  wrong,"  Gervaise  said  quietly  ;  "but  you 
know  we  have  our  spies  at  Constantinople,  and  probably  the 
sultan  has  his  spies  here  ;  and  the  idea  occurred  to  me  that 
perhaps  this  man  might  be  one  of  them." 

"Well,  I  am  bound  to  say,  Gervaise,"  Ralph  said,  a  little 
irritably,  "  I  have  never  heard  so  grave  an  accusation  brought 
on  such  insufficient  evidence — or  rather,  as  far  as  I  can  see, 
without  a  shadow  of  evidence  of  any  kind.  We  drop  in  upon 
a  man  who  is  one  of  our  most  respected  merchants,  whose 


140  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

family  has  been  established  here  many  years,  whose  interests 
must  be  the  same  as  those  of  the  Order  ;  and  because  a  guest 
of  his  does  not  care  to  take  any  active  part  in  my  joking  with 
the  girls,  and  because  you  imagine  that  there  is  a  cunning 
expression  on  his  face,  you  must  straightway  take  it  into  your 
head  that  he  must  be  a  spy." 

"Excuse  me,  Ralph,  I  simply  said  that  the  idea  occurred 
to  me  that  he  might  be  a  spy,  which  is  a  very  different  thing 
to  my  accusing  him  of  being  one.  I  am  ready  to  admit  that 
the  chances  are  infinitely  greater  that  he  is  an  honest  trader 
or  a  relation  of  the  merchant,  and  that  his  presence  here  is 
perfectly  legitimate  and  natural,  than  that  he  should  be  a  spy. 
Still,  there  is  a  chance,  if  it  be  but  one  out  of  a  thousand, 
that  he  may  be  the  latter.  I  don't  think  that  I  am  at  all  of 
a  suspicious  nature,  but  I  really  should  like  to  learn  a  little 
about  this  man.  I  do  not  mean  that  I  am  going  to  try  to 
do  so.  It  would  be  an  unworthy  action  to  pry  into  another's 
business,  when  it  is  n&  concern  of  one's  own.  Still,  I  should 
like  to  know  why  he  is  here. ' ' 

Ralph  shrugged  his  shoulders. 

"  This  comes  of  living  the  life  of  a  hermit,  Gervaise. 
Other  people  meet  and  talk,  and  enjoy  what  society  there  is 
in  the  city,  without  troubling  their  heads  for  a  moment  as  to 
where  people  come  from  or  what  their  business  is  here,  still 
less  whether  they  are  spies.  Such  ideas  do  not  so  much  as 
occur  to  them,  and  I  must  say  that  I  think  the  sooner  you  fall 
into  the  ways  of  other  people  the  better. ' ' 

"  There  is  no  harm  done,"  Gervaise  said  composedly.  "  I 
am  not  thinking  of  asking  our  bailiff  to  order  him  to  be 
arrested  on  suspicion.  I  only  remarked  that  I  did  not  like 
the  man's  face,  nor  the  way  in  which,  while  he  pretended  to 
be  thinking  of  nothing,  he  was  trying  to  overhear  what  we 
were  saying.  I  am  quite  willing  to  admit  that  I  have  made 
a  mistake,  not  in  devoting  myself  to  Turkish,  but  in  going  to 
the  merchant's  with  you  this  evening.  I  have  had  no  experi- 


AN    EVENING    AT    RHODES  141 

ence  whatever  of  what  you  call  society,  and,  so  far  from  it 
giving  me  pleasure  to  talk  to  strangers,  especially  to  women,  it 
seems  to  me  that  such  talk  is  annoying  to  me,  at  any  rate  at 
present.  When  I  get  to  your  age,  possibly  my  ideas  may 
change.  I  don't  for  a  moment  wish  to  judge  you  or  others  ; 
you  apparently  enjoy  it,  and  it  is  a  distraction  from  our  seri- 
ous work.  I  say  simply  that  it  is  an  amusement  which  I  do 
not  understand.  You  must  remember  that  I  entered  the 
Order  in  consequence  of  a  solemn  vow  of  my  dead  father,  that 
I  regard  the  profession  we  make  as  a  very  serious  one,  and 
that  my  present  intention  is  to  devote  my  life  entirely  to  the 
Order  and  to  an  active  fulfilment  of  its  vows." 

"  That  is  all  right,  Gervaise,"  Ralph  said  good -temper  edly. 
"  Only  I  think  it  would  be  a  pity  if  you  were  to  turn  out  a 
fanatic.  Jerusalem  and  Palestine  are  lost,  and  you  admit 
that  there  is  really  very  little  chance  of  our  ever  regaining 
them.  Our  duties,  therefore,  are  changed,  and  we  are  now 
an  army  of  knights,  pledged  to  war  against  the  infidels,  in 
the  same  way  as  knights  and  nobles  at  home  are  ever  ready 
to  engage  in  a  war  with  France.  The  vow  of  poverty  is  long 
since  obsolete.  Many  of  our  chief  officials  are  men  of  great 
wealth,  and  indeed,  a  grand  master,  or  the  bailiff  of  a  langue, 
is  expected  to  spend,  and  does  spend,  a  sum  vastly  exceeding 
his  allowance  from  the  Order.  The  great  body  of  knights 
are  equally  lax  as  to  some  of  their  other  vows,  and  carry  this 
to  a  length  that,  as  you  know,  has  caused  grave  scandal.  But 
I  see  not  that  it  is  in  any  way  incumbent  on  us  to  give  up 
all  the  pleasures  of  life.  We  are  a  military  Order,  and  are  all 
ready  to  fight  in  defence  of  Rhodes,  as  in  bygone  days  we 
were  ready  to  fight  in  defence  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre.  Kings 
and  great  nobles  have  endowed  us  with  a  large  number  of 
estates,  in  order  to  maintain  us  as  an  army  against  Islam  ;  and 
as  such  we  do  our  duty.  But  to  affect  asceticism  is  out  of 
date  and  ridiculous." 

"  I  have  certainly  no  wish  to  be  an  ascetic,  Ralph.     I  should 


142  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

have  no  objection  to  hold  estates,  if  I  had  them  to  hold.  But 
I  think  that  at  present,  with  the  great  danger  hanging  over 
us,  it  would  be  better  if,  in  the  first  place,  we  were  all  to 
spend  less  time  in  idleness  or  amusement,  and  to  devote  all 
our  energies  to  the  cause.  I  mean  not  only  by  fighting  when 
the  time  comes  for  fighting,  but  by  endeavouring  in  every  way 
to  ward  off  danger. ' ' 

"  When  I  see  danger,  I  will  do  my  best  to  ward  it  off,  Ger- 
vaise  ;  but  I  cannot  go  about  with  my  nose  in  the  air,  snuffing 
danger  like  a  hunting  dog  in  pursuit  of  game.  At  any  rate,  I 
will  not  bother  you  to  accompany  me  on  my  visits  in  future." 


CHAPTER   IX 

WITH   THE   GALLEY-SLAVES 

/^ERVAISE,  on  consideration,  was  obliged  to  own  to  him- 
\J  self  that  Ralph  was  right  in  saying  that  he  had  no  ground 
whatever  for  suspicion  against  the  Greek  he  had  met  at  Signer 
Vrados's  ;  and  he  could  see  no  means  of  following  the  matter 
up.  It  would  not,  he  felt,  be  honourable  to  go  again  to  the 
merchant's  house,  and  to  avail  himself  of  his  hospitality,  while 
watching  his  guest.  He  determined  to  dismiss  the  matter 
from  his  mind,  and  had,  indeed,  altogether  done  so  when,  a 
week  later,  it  suddenly  recurred  to  his  memory. 

A  party  of  slaves,  under  the  escort  of  overseers  and  in  charge 
of  a  knight  who  had  been  with  them  at  their  work  on  the  for- 
tifications, were  passing  along  the  street  on  their  way  back  to 
barracks.  It  was  already  dusk,  and  as  Gervaise  was  going  the 
same  way  as  they  were,  he  stood  aside  in  a  doorway  to  let 
them  pass.  He  was  on  the  point  of  stepping  out  to  follow 
them,  when  he  saw  a  man,  who  had  been  standing  in  the 
shadow  of  the  wall,  fall  in  with  their  ranks,  and,  as  he  walked, 


WITH    THE   GALLEY-SLAVES  143 

engage  in  an  earnest  conversation  with  one  of  the  slaves.  He 
kept  beside  him  for  a  hundred  yards  or  so,  then  passed  some- 
thing into  the  slave's  hand,  and  turned  abruptly  down  a  side 
opening.  There  were  but  few  people  about,  and  in  the  grow- 
ing darkness  the  action  of  the  man  passed  unobserved  by  the 
overseers.  Gervaise,  thinking  the  occurrence  a  strange  one, 
turned  down  the  same  lane  as  the  man. 

He  slackened  his  pace  until  the  latter  was  fifty  yards  ahead, 
so  that  he  would  not,  had  he  looked  round,  have  been  able  to 
perceive  that  it  was  a  knight  who  was  behind  him.  After 
passing  through  several  streets,  the  man  turned  into  a  refresh- 
ment house.  The  door  stood  open,  and  as  the  place  was 
brightly  lit  up,  Gervaise,  pausing  outside,  was  able  to  see  what 
was  going  on  inside.  The  man  he  had  followed  was  on  the 
point  of  seating  himself  at  one  of  the  tables,  and  as  he  did  so 
Gervaise  recognised  him  as  the  Greek  he  had  met  at  the  mer- 
chant's house.  He  at  once  walked  on  a  short  distance,  and 
then  paused  to  think. 

The  vague  suspicions  he  had  before  entertained  as  to  the 
man  now  recurred  with  double  force ;  he  was  certainly  in 
communication  with  one  or  more  of  the  slaves,  and  such  com- 
munication, so  secretly  effected,  could  be  for  no  good  purpose. 
So  far,  however,  there  was  nothing  he  could  tax  the  man  with. 
He  would  probably  deny  altogether  that  he  had  spoken  to  any 
of  the  slaves,  and  Gervaise  could  not  point  out  the  one  he  had 
conversed  with.  At  any  rate,  nothing  could  be  done  now, 
and  he  required  time  to  think  what  steps  he  could  take  to  fol- 
low up  the  matter.  He  resolved,  however,  to  wait  and  follow 
the  Greek  when  he  came  out.  After  a  few  minutes  he  again 
re-passed  the  door,  and  saw  that  the  man  was  engaged  in  ear- 
nest conversation  with  another.  After  considering  for  a  time, 
Gervaise  thought  that  it  would  be  best  for  him  to  follow  this 
other  man  when  he  left,  and  ascertain  who  he  was,  rather  than 
to  keep  a  watch  on  the  movements  of  the  Greek,  who,  as  likely 
as  not,  would  now  return  to  the  merchant's. 


144  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

He  walked  several  times  up  and  down  the  street,  until  at 
last  he  saw  the  two  men  issue  out  together.  They  stopped  for 
a  moment  outside,  and  then,  after  exchanging  a  few  words, 
separated,  the  Greek  going  in  the  direction  of  the  quarter  in 
which  lay  the  house  of  Vrados,  while  the  other  walked  towards 
Gervaise.  The  latter  passed  him  carelessly,  but  when  the  man 
had  gone  nearly  to  the  end  of  the  street,  he  turned  and  fol- 
lowed him.  He  could  see  at  once  that  he  was  a  lay  brother 
of  the  Order.  This  class  consisted  of  men  of  an  inferior  social 
position  to  the  knights  ;  they  filled  many  of  the  minor  offices, 
but  were  not  eligible  for  promotion.  Following  for  ten 
minutes,  Gervaise  saw  him  approach  one  of  the  barracks,  or 
prisons,  occupied  by  the  slaves.  He  knocked  at  the  door, 
and,  upon  its  being  opened,  at  once  entered. 

The  matter  had  now  assumed  a  much  more  serious  aspect. 
This  young  Greek,  a  stranger  to  Rhodes,  was  in  communica- 
tion not  only  with  some  of  the  slaves,  but  with  a  prison  offi- 
cial, and  the  matter  appeared  so  grave  to  Gervaise  that,  after 
some  deliberation,  he  thought  it  was  too  important  for  him  to 
endeavour  to  follow  out  alone,  and  that  it  was  necessary  to 
lay  it  before  the  bailiff.  Accordingly,  after  the  evening  meal 
he  went  up  to  Sir  John  Kendall,  and  asked  if  he  could  confer 
with  him  alone  on  a  matter  over  which  he  was  somewhat 
troubled.  The  bailiff  assented  at  once,  and  Gervaise  followed 
him  to  his  private  apartment. 

' '  Now,  what  is  this  matter,  Sir  Gervaise  ?  "  he  asked 
pleasantly.  "  Nothing  serious,  I  trust  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know,  Sir  John.  That  is  a  matter  for  your  con- 
sideration ;  but  it  seems  to  me  of  such  importance  that  it 
ought  to  be  brought  to  your  knowledge." 

The  face  of  the  bailiff  grew  more  grave,  and,  seating  him- 
self in  a  chair,  he  motioned  to  Gervaise  to  do  the  same. 

"  Now,  let  me  hear  what  it  is,"  he  said. 

Gervaise  told  his  story  simply.  A  slight  smile  passed  across 
the  bailiffs  face  as  he  mentioned  that  he  had  met  the  Greek 


WITH    THE    GALLEY-SLAVES  145 

on  the  roof  of  the  house  of  Signer  Vrados,  and  had  not  liked 
the  expression  of  his  face. 

"  Vrados  has  some  fair  daughters,  has  he  not  ?  "  he  asked. 

''Yes,  sir;  but  I  know  little  of  them.  That  is  the  only 
visit  that  I  ever  paid  there,  or,  indeed,  to  the  house  of  any 
one  in  the  town." 

Sir  John's  face  grew  grave  again  as  Gervaise  recounted  how 
he  had  seen  the  man  enter  into  communication  with  a  slave ; 
and  he  frowned  heavily  when  he  heard  of  his  meeting  after- 
wards with  one  of  the  prison  officers. 

"In  truth,  Sir  Gervaise,"  he  said,  after  a  pause,  "this 
seems  to  be  a  right  serious  matter,  and  you  have  done  wisely 
in  informing  me  of  what  you  have  seen.  Assuredly  there  is 
mischief  of  some  sort  in  the  wind.  The  question  is  how  to 
get  to  the  bottom  of  it.  Of  course,  the  grand  master  might 
order  the  arrest  of  this  Greek  and  of  the  prison  officer,  but 
you  may  be  sure  that  neither  would  commit  himself  unless 
torture  were  applied ;  and  I,  for  one,  have  no  belief  in  what 
any  man  says  under  such  circumstances.  The  most  honest 
man  may  own  himself  a  traitor  when  racked  with  torture,  and 
may  denounce  innocent  men.  It  is  at  best  a  clumsy  device. 
What  think  you  of  the  matter  ?  " 

"I  have  hardly  thought  it  over  yet,  Sir  John;  and  cer- 
tainly no  plan  has  yet  occurred  to  me." 

"  Well,  think  it  over,  Sir  Gervaise.  It  is  not  likely  that  a 
few  days  will  make  any  difference.  But  I  will  take  measures 
to  see  that  this  Greek  does  not  sail  away  from  the  Island  at 
present,  and  will  speak  to  the  port-master  about  it.  I  will 
myself  give  the  matter  consideration,  but  as  you  have  shown 
yourself  so  quick-witted  in  following  up  the  matter  so  far,  I 
rely  upon  you  more  than  myself  to  carry  it  farther.  There 
may  possibly  be  some  simple  explanation  of  the  matter.  He 
may  come  from  an  island  where  the  Turks  are  masters,  and 
has,  perhaps,  brought  a  message  from  some  relatives  of  a 
slave  ;  as  to  the  talk  with  the  prison  officer,  it  may  be  wholly 


146  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE   CROSS 

innocent.  If  we  should  find  that  it  is  so  we  will  keep  this 
matter  to  ourselves,  if  possible,  or  we  shall  get  finely  laughed 
at  by  our  comrades  for  having  run  upon  a  false  scent.  If,  on 
the  other  hand,  the  matter  should  turn  out  to  be  serious,  you 
will  assuredly  get  great  credit  for  having  discovered  it.  There- 
fore, turn  it  over  in  your  mind  to-night,  and  see  if  you  can 
arrive  at  some  scheme  for  seeing  further  into  it  before  we  take 
any  steps." 

In  the  morning  Gervaise  again  called  upon  Sir  John  Kendall. 

"  Well,  Sir  Gervaise,  I  hope  that  you  have  hit  upon  some 
scheme  for  getting  to  the  bottom  of  this  matter.  I  confess 
that  I  myself,  though  I  have  had  a  sleepless  night  over  it,  have 
not  been  able  to  see  any  method  of  getting  to  the  root  of  the 
affair,  save  by  the  application  of  torture. ' ' 

"I  do  not  know  whether  the  plan  I  have  thought  of  will 
commend  itself  to  your  opinion,  sir,  but  I  have  worked  out  a 
scheme  which  will,  I  think,  enable  us  to  get  to  the  bottom  of 
the  matter.  I  believe  that  a  galley  is  expected  back  from  a 
cruise  to-day  or  to-morrow.  Now,  sir,  my  idea  is  that  I  should 
go  on  board  a  small  craft,  under  the  command  of  a  knight 
upon  whose  discretion  and  silence  you  can  rely,  such  as,  for 
example,  Sir  John  Boswell,  and  that  we  should  intercept  the 
galley.  Before  we  board  her  I  should  disguise  myself  as  a 
Turkish  slave,  and  as  such  Sir  John  should  hand  me  over  to 
the  officer  in  command  of  the  galley,  giving  him  a  letter  of 
private  instructions  from  you  as  to  my  disposal.  If  they  have 
other  slaves  on  board  I  would  ask  that  I  should  be  kept  apart 
from  them,  as  well  as  from  the  rowers  of  the  galley.  On  being 
landed  I  should  be  sent  to  the  prison  where  I  saw  the  officer 
enter  last  night,  and  the  slaves  and  rowers  should  be  distributed 
among  the  other  prisons.  Thus,  then,  the  slaves  I  should  be 
placed  with  would  only  know  that  I  had  arrived  in  the  galley 
with  other  slaves  captured  by  it.  I  have  no  doubt  I  should 
be  able  to  maintain  my  assumed  character,  and  should  in  a 
short  time  be  taken  into  the  confidence  of  the  others,  and 


WITH    THE    GALLEY-SLAVES  147 

should  learn  what  is  going  on.  It  would  be  well,  of  course, 
that  none  of  the  officials  of  the  prison  should  be  informed  as 
to  my  true  character,  for  others,  besides  the  one  I  saw,  may 
have  been  bribed  to  participate  in  whatever  plot  is  going  on." 

"  And  do  you  mean  to  say,  Sir  Gervaise,  that  you,  a  knight 
of  the  Order,  are  willing  to  submit  to  the  indignity  of  being 
treated  as  a  slave  ?  To  keep  up  the  disguise  long  enough  to  be 
taken  into  the  confidence  of  the  plotters,  you  might  have  to 
stay  there  for  some  time ;  and  if  the  prison  officials  believe 
you  to  be  but  an  ordinary  slave,  you  will  be  put  to  work  either 
on  the  walls  or  in  one  of  the  galleys. ' ' 

"  I  am  ready  to  do  anything  for  the  benefit  of  the  Order, 
and  the  safety  of  Rhodes,  that  will  meet  with  your  approval," 
Gervaise  replied.  "  It  will  no  doubt  be  unpleasant,  but  we 
did  not  enter  the  Order  to  do  pleasant  things,  but  to  perform 
certain  duties,  and  those  duties  necessarily  involve  a  certain 
amount  of  sacrifice." 

"  Do  you  think  you  would  be  able  to  maintain  the  character? 
Because  you  must  remember  that  if  detected  you  might  be' torn 
in  pieces  by  the  slaves,  before  the  officers  could  interfere  to 
protect  you." 

"  I  feel  sure  that  I  can  do  so,  Sir  John." 

"  What  story  would  you  tell  them?  " 

' ( I  would  say  that  I  had  come  from  Syria,  and  sailed  from 
Acre  in  a  trader,  which  is  perfectly  true,  and  also  that  I  was 
taken  off  the  ship  I  was  on  by  a  galley — which  would  not  be 
altogether  false,  as  I  crossed  one  as  I  landed.  I  think  there 
would  be  very  little  questioning,  for  I  should  pretend  to  be  in 
a  state  of  sullen  despair,  and  give  such  short  answers  to  ques- 
tions that  I  should  soon  be  left  alone." 

"  The  scheme  is  a  good  one,  Sir  Gervaise,  though  full  of 
danger  and  difficulty.  If  you  are  ready  to  render  this  great 
service  to  the  Order,  I  willingly  accept  the  sacrifice  you  offer 
to  make.  I  will  send  one  of  my  slaves  down  into  the  town  to 
buy  garments  suitable  for  you,  and  also  stains  for  your  skin. 


148  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

It  will,  of  course,  be  necessary  for  you  to  shave  a  portion  of 
your  head  in  Turkish  fashion.  I  will  also  see  Sir  John  Bos- 
well,  and  ask  him  to  arrange  for  a  craft  to  be  ready  to  start  at 
noon.  The  galley  is  not  expected  in  until  evening,  but  of 
course  she  may  arrive  at  any  moment  now.  Come  here 
again  in  an  hour's  time,  and  I  will  have  the  clothes  ready 
for  you." 

"  May  I  suggest,  sir,  that  they  should  be  those  appropriate 
to  a  small  merchant?  This  might  seem  to  account  for  my  not 
being  placed  with  the  other  slaves  who  may  be  on  board  the 
galley,  as  it  would  be  supposed  that  I  was  set  apart  in  order 
that  I  should  be  sent  to  one  of  the  auberges  as  a  servant ;  and 
my  afterwards  being  herded  with  the  others  would  be  explained 
by  its  being  found  that  there  was  no  opening  for  me  in  such 
a  capacity.  I  should  think  there  would  be  no  difficulty  in 
obtaining  such  a  suit,  as  garments  of  all  kinds  are  brought  here 
in  prizes,  and  are  bought  up  by  some  of  the  Greek  merchants, 
who  afterwards  find  opportunities  of  despatching  them  by  craft 
trading  among  the  islands." 

Just  before  noon  Gervaise  walked  down  to  the  port  with  Sir 
John  Boswell,  a  servant  following  with  a  bundle. 

"  It  seems  to  me  a  hair-brained  scheme,  lad,"  Sir  John,  who 
had  just  joined  him,  said,  as  they  issued  from  the  auberge ; 
"  though  I  own,  from  what  the  bailiff  tells  me,  that  there  must 
be  some  treacherous  plot  on  hand,  and  when  that  is  the  case 
it  is  necessary  that  it  should  be  probed  to  the  bottom.  But 
for  a  knight  to  go  in  the  disguise  of  an  infidel  slave  seems  to 
me  to  be  beyond  all  bounds." 

"  If  one  is  ready  to  give  one's  life  for  the  Order,  Sir  John, 
surely  one  need  not  mind  a  few  weeks'  inconvenience.  I 
shall,  at  any  rate,  be  no  worse  off  than  you  were  when  serving 
as  a  Turkish  slave." 

"Well,  no,  I  don't  know  that  you  will,"  Sir  John  replied 
doubtfully.  "  But  that  was  from  necessity,  and  not  from 
choice ;  and  it  is,  moreover,  an  accident  we  are  all  exposed  to. ' ' 


WITH    THE   GALLEY-SLAVES  149 

"It  is  surely  better  to  do  a  thing  of  one's  own  free  will 
than  because  one  is  forced  to  do  it,  Sir  John? " 

The  knight  was  silent.  He  was  a  stout  fighting  man,  but 
unused  to  argument. 

"  Well,"  he  said,  after  a  long  pause,  "  I  can  only  hope  that 
it  will  turn  out  all  right,  and  promise  that  if  you  are  strangled 
in  prison,  I  will  see  that  every  slave  who  had  a  hand  in  it 
shall  be  strung  up.  I  have  told  Kendall  frankly  that  if  I  were 
in  his  place  I  would  not  permit  you  to  try  such  a  venture. 
However,  as  I  could  think  of  no  other  plan  by  which  there 
would  be  a  chance  of  getting  to  the  bottom  of  this  matter,  my 
words  had  no  effect  with  him.  I  should  not  have  so  much 
cared  if  the  officers  of  the  gaol  knew  who  you  were;  but  I  can 
see  that  if  there  is  treachery  at  work  this  would  defeat  your 
object  altogether.  What  do  you  suppose  this  rascal  Greek  can 
be  intending?" 

"  That  I  cannot  say,  Sir  John.  He  may  be  trying  to  get 
an  exact  plan  of  the  fortifications,  or  he  may  be  arranging 
some  plan  of  communication  by  which,  in  case  of  siege,  news 
of  our  condition  and  of  the  state  of  our  defences  may  be  con- 
veyed to  the  Turkish  commander." 

By  this  time  they  had  reached  the  port,  and  embarked  at 
once  on  a  trading  vessel  belonging  to  one  of  the  merchants, 
from  whom  Sir  John  had  readily  obtained  her  use  for  a  day  or 
two.  Her  sails  were  hoisted  at  once,  and  she  rowed  out  from 
the  port.  Having  proceeded  some  three  or  four  miles,  they 
lowered  her  sails,  and  lay  to  in  the  course  a  galley  making  for 
the  port  would  take.  A  sailor  was  sent  up  to  the  masthead 
to  keep  a  look-out.  Late  in  the  afternoon  he  called  down 
that  he  could  make  out  a  black  speck  some  twelve  miles  away. 
She  carried  no  sails,  and  he  judged  her  to  be  a  galley. 

•'  It  will  be  dark  before  she  comes  along,"  Sir  John  Boswell 
said.  "  You  can  hoist  your  sails,  captain,  and  return  to  within 
half  a  mile  of  the  port,  or  she  may  pass  us  beyond  hailing  dis- 
tance." 


150  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

Gervaise  at  once  retired  to  the  cabin  that  had  been  set  aside 
for  their  use,  and  proceeded  to  disguise  himself.  An  hour 
later  Sir  John  came  down.  He  looked  at  Gervaise  critically. 

"  You  are  all  right  as  far  as  appearances  go.  I  should  take 
you  anywhere  for  a  young  Turk.  Your  clothes  are  not  too 
new,  and  are  in  accordance  with  the  tale  you  are  going  to  tell, 
which  is  that  you  are  the  son  of  a  Syrian  trader.  If,  as  Sulei- 
man says,  you  speak  Turkish  well  enough  to  pose  as  a  native, 
I  think  you  ought  to  be  able  to  pass  muster.  How  long  will 
that  dye  last  ?  Because  if  it  begins  to  fade  they  will  soon  sus- 
pect you." 

' '  It  will  last  a  fortnight ;  at  least,  so  Sir  John  Kendall  says. 
But  he  has  arranged  that  if  at  the  end  of  ten  days  I  have  not 
succeeded  in  finding  out  anything,  he  will  send  down  to  the 
prison,  and  under  the  pretence  that  he  wants  to  ask  me  some 
questions  about  what  ransom  my  father  would  be  likely  to  pay 
for  me,  he  will  have  me  up  to  the  auberge,  and  there  I  can 
dye  myself  afresh. ' ' 

"  How  are  you  to  communicate  with  him  in  case  of  need  ?  " 

"  His  servant  Ahmet,  who  got  the  things  for  me,  is  to  come 
down  every  morning,  and  to  be  near  the  door  of  the  prison  at 
the  hour  when  the  slaves  are  taken  out  to  work.  If  I  have 
aught  to  communicate  I  am  to  nod  twice,  and  Sir  John  Ken- 
dall will  send  down  that  evening  to  fetch  me,  instead  of  wait- 
ing until  it  is  time  for  me  to  renew  my  dye. ' ' 

"  What  is  going  to  be  said  to  Harcourt  and  the  others  to 
account  for  your  absence  ?  ' ' 

"  The  bailiff  will  merely  say  that  he  has  suddenly  sent  me 
away  by  ship,  on  a  private  mission.  They  may  wonder,  per- 
haps, but  none  of  them  will  venture  to  ask  him  its  nature. ' ' 

"  Well,  I  must  say  that  you  seem  to  have  made  all  your 
arrangements  carefully,  Tresham,  and  I  hope  it  will  turn  out 
well.  I  was  against  the  scheme  at  first,  but  I  own  that  I  do  not 
see  now  why  it  should  not  succeed ;  and  if  there  is  any  plot 
really  on  hand,  you  may  be  able  to  get  to  the  bottom  of  it." 


WITH    THE    GALLEY-SLAVES  151 

It  was  an  hour  after  darkness  had  completely  fallen  when 
the  regular  beat  of  oars  was  heard.  The  ship's  boat  was  al- 
ready in  the  water,  and  Gervaise,  wrapped  up  in  his  mantle, 
followed  Sir  John  out  of  his  cabin  and  descended  with  him 
into  the  boat,  which  was  at  once  rowed  towards  the  approach- 
ing galley.  Sir  John  hailed  it  as  it  came  along. 

"  Who  is  it  calls?  "  a  voice  said. 

"It  is  I — Sir  John  Boswell.  Pray  take  me  on  board,  Sir 
Almeric.  It  is  a  somewhat  special  matter." 

The  order  was  given,  the  galley-slaves  ceased  rowing,  and 
the  boat  ran  alongside.  Gervaise  unclasped  his  mantle  and 
gave  it  to  Sir  John,  and  then  followed  him  on  board. 

"  I  congratulate  you  on  your  return,  and  on  your  good  fort- 
une in  having,  as  your  letter  stated,  made  a  prosperous  voy- 
age," Sir  John  said,  as  he  shook  hands  with  the  commander 
of  the  galley.  "  I  would  speak  a  word  with  you  aside,"  he 
added  in  a  low  voice. 

Sir  Almeric  moved  with  him  a  few  paces  from  the  other 
knights. 

"lam  sent  here  by  our  bailiff,  Sir  Almeric.  I  have  a 
Turkish  prisoner  here  with  me  who  is  to  be  landed  with  those 
you  have  taken.  There  are  special  reasons  for  this,  which  I 
need  not  now  enter  into.  Will  you  let  him  sit  down  here  by 
the  helm  ?  My  instructions  are  that  he  is  not  to  mingle  with 
the  other  slaves  ;  and  as  there  are  reasons  why  it  is  wished  that 
his  coming  on  board  in  this  manner  shall  not  be  known  to 
them,  I  myself  am  to  take  him  up  to  one  of  the  prisons,  or  at 
least  to  hand  him  over  to  the  officer  sent  down  from  that 
prison  to  take  up  the  captives  allotted  to  it.  The  matter  is  of 
more  importance  than  it  seems  to  be,  or,  as  you  may  imagine, 
I  should  not  be  charged  to  intercept  you  on  such  an  errand." 

"Of  course,  I  don't  understand  anything  about  it,  Sir 
John,  but  will  do  as  you  ask  me." 

He  went  to  where  Gervaise  had  crouched  down  by  the  bul- 
wark, beckoned  him  to  follow,  and,  walking  aft,  motioned  to 


152  A   KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE   CROSS 

him  to  sit  down  there.  Then  he  returned  to  Sir  John,  and 
joined  the  other  knights,  who  were  all  too  anxious  to  learn  the 
latest  news — who  had  left  the  island,  and  who  had  come  to  it 
since  they  sailed — to  interest  themselves  in  any  way  with  the 
figure  who  had  gone  aft,  supposing  him,  indeed,  to  be  Sir 
John's  servant,  the  lantern  suspended  over  the  poop  giving 
too  feeble  a  light  for  his  costume  to  be  noted. 

A  quarter  of  an  hour  later  they  anchored  in  the  harbour. 
Some  of  the  knights  at  once  went  ashore  to  their  respective 
auberges,  but  Sir  Almeric  and  a  few  others  remained  on  board 
until  relieved  of  their  charge  in  the  morning,  an  account  being 
sent  on  shore  of  the  number  of  captives  that  had  been  brought 
in.  No  thought  was  given  to  Gervaise,  who  slept  curled  up  on 
the  poop.  Sir  John  Boswell  passed  the  night  on  board.  In  the 
morning  an  officer  came  off  with  a  list  of  the  prisons  to  which 
the  slaves  were  to  be  sent.  Sir  John  Kendall  had  seen  the 
officer  charged  with  the  distribution,  who  had,  at  his  request, 
not  included  the  prison  of  St.  Pelagius  in  the  list. 

A  message,  however,  had  been  sent  to  that  prison,  as  well 
as  to  the  others,  for  an  officer  to  attend  at  the  landing-stage. 
In  the  morning  Sir  John  went  ashore  in  one  of  the  boats  con- 
veying the  slaves,  of  whom  some  forty  had  been  captured. 
Gervaise  followed  him  into  the  boat,  and  took  his  seat  by  the 
others,  who  were  too  dispirited  at  the  fate  which  had  befallen 
them  to  pay  any  attention  to  him. 

When  he  landed,  Sir  John  asked  which  was  the  officer  from 
St.  Pelagius.  One  stepped  forward. 

"  This  is  the  only  slave  for  you,"  he  said,  pointing  to  Ger- 
vaise. "  He  is  of  a  better  class  than  the  rest,  and  in  the  fut- 
ure may  be  he  will  do  for  a  servitor  at  one  of  the  auberges,  but 
none  have  at  present  occasion  for  one,  and  so  he  is  to  go  to 
you.  He  says  that  his  father  is  a  merchant,  and  will  be  ready 
to  pay  a  ransom  for  him  ;  but  they  all  say  that,  and  we  must 
not  heed  it  overmuch.  As  he  seems  a  smart  young  fellow,  it 
may  be  that  he  will  be  sent  to  one  of  the  auberges  later  on ; 


.  WITH   THE    GALLEY-SLAVES  153 

but  at  present,  at  any  rate,  you  can  put  him  with  the  rest,  and 
send  him  out  with  the  gangs." 

"  He  is  a  well-built  young  fellow,  Sir  John,"  the  officer  re- 
marked, "  and  should  make  a  good  rower  in  a  galley.  I  will 
put  him  in  the  crew  of  the  St.  Elmo.  Follow  me,"  he  said,  in 
Turkish,  to  Gervaise,  and  then  led  the  way  up  to  the  prison. 
On  entering  he  crossed  a  courtyard  to  a  door  which  was  stand- 
ing open.  Within  was  a  vaulted  room,  some  forty  feet  long  by 
twenty  wide ;  along  each  side  there  were  rushes  strewn  thickly. 

"  The  others  have  just  started  to  their  work,"  he  said,  "  so 
that  for  to-day  you  can  sleep." 

After  he  had  left,  Gervaise  looked  with  some  disgust  at  the 
rushes,  that  had  evidently  been  for  weeks  unchanged. 

"  I  would  rather  have  the  bare  stones,  if  they  were  clean," 
he  muttered  to  himself.  "  However,  it  can't  be  helped." 

He  presently  strolled  out  into  the  courtyard,  where  some 
other  slaves,  disabled  by  illness  or  injuries,  were  seated  in  the 
sun.  Gervaise  walked  across  to  them,  and  they  looked  list- 
lessly up  at  him  as  he  approached. 

"You  are  a  new-comer,"  one  said,  as  he  came  up.  "  I  saw 
you  brought  in,  but  it  didn't  need  that.  By  the  time  you  have 
been  here  a  week  or  two,  your  clothes  will  be  like  ours,"  and 
he  pointed  to  his  ragged  garments.  "  When  did  you  arrive? 
Are  there  no  others  coming  up  here  ?  ' ' 

' '  The  galley  came  in  last  night, ' '  Gervaise  said,  ' '  but  they 
did  not  land  us  until  this  morning.  I  wish  they  had  killed 
me  rather  than  that  I  should  have  been  brought  here  to  work 
as  a  slave. ' ' 

"  One  always  thinks  so  at  first,"  the  man  said.  "But  some- 
how one  clings  to  life.  We  shall  die  when  Allah  wills  it,  and 
not  before." 

"  What  is  the  matter  with  your  foot  ?  "  Gervaise  asked. 

"  I  was  with  the  gang  quarrying  stones,  and  a  mass  of  rock 
fell  upon  it.  I  have  been  in  the  infirmary  for  weeks,  and  I 
own  that  the  Christian  dogs  treated  me  well.  A  slave  has  his 


154  •         A    K.NIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE    CROSS 

value,  you  see.  I  am  nearly  cured  now,  but  I  shall  never  walk 
well  again.  I  expect  they  will  put  me  in  one  of  their  accursed 
galleys. ' ' 

' '  How  long  have  you  been  here  ?  ' ' 

"  Seven  years ;  it  seems  a  lifetime.  However,  there  is  hope 
yet.  They  don't  tell  us  much,  but  we  hear  things  sometimes, 
and  they  say  that  the  sultan  is  going  to  sweep  them  out  of 
Rhodes  as  they  were  swept  out  of  Acre.  When  will  it  be  ?  " 

"I  know  not.  I  am  from  Syria,  but  even  there  they  are 
making  preparations.  The  sultan  has  had  troubles  in  the  East, 
and  that  has  delayed  him,  but  he  will  be  here  before  long,  and 
then  we  shall  see.  It  will  be  our  turn  then." 

"  It  will,  indeed  !  "  one  of  the  others  exclaimed.  "  Oh,  to 
see  these  dogs  brought  down,  and  suffering  as  we  have  suffered, 
toiling  at  oars  in  one  of  our  galleys,  or  at  the  fortifications  of 
one  of  our  castles  !  It  will  make  amends  for  all  our  suffering. 
Had  you  a  hard  fight  with  them  ?  " 

"  No.  We  were  but  a  small  craft,  and  it  was  vain  to  attempt 
resistance.  I  would  gladly  have  fought,  but  the  sailors  said  it 
would  only  throw  away  their  lives.  There  was  but  little  on 
board,  and  they  allowed  the  vessel  to  go  free  with  those  of  the 
sailors  who  were  too  old  to  be  made  useful  for  hard  work." 

No  further  questions  were  asked.  The  men  seemed  to  have 
no  interest  save  in  their  own  misery,  and  Gervaise  soon  left 
them,  and,  sitting  down  in  a  shady  corner,  presently  dropped 
off  to  sleep.^ 

In  the  evening  all  came  in  from  their  various  work.  The 
officer  man  who  had  brought  Gervaise  in  went  up  to  the  over- 
seer of  the  galley-slaves  and  informed  him  that  he  had  told  off 
the  new  slave — pointing  to  Gervaise — to  his  gang. 

"  He  was  brought  in  by  the  galley  that  arrived  last  night," 
he  said  ;  "he  was  the  only  slave  sent  up  here.  I  hear  that  he 
had  been  set  aside  to  be  appointed  a  servitor,  but  there  are  no 
vacancies,  so  they  sent  him  here  till  one  should  occur ;  and  I 
was  ordered  to  make  him  useful  in  other  ways  in  the  meantime. ' ' 


SIR   (;i  RVAISE    IN    PRISON  ANSWERS  THE  QUESTIONS   OF  THE  GALLEY- 
SLAVES. 


WITH    THE    GALLEY-SLAVES  156 

"I  am  two  or  three  hands  short,"  the  overseer  said.  "  I 
wish  now  I  had  sent  in  an  application  yesterday,  for  if  I  had 
done  so,  no  doubt  they  would  have  sent  me  some  more  men. 
However,  this  fellow  will  make  up  an  even  number,  and  he  is 
strong  and  active,  though  at  present  he  looks  sulky  enough 
under  his  bad  fortune." 

A  few  of  the  slaves  spoke  to  Gervaise  as  they  were  waiting 
for  food  to  be  brought  them,  but  the  majority  dropped  upon 
the  rushes,  too  exhausted  with  toil  and  heat  to  feel  an  interest 
in  anything.  The  food  consisted  of  rye  bread,  with  thin 
broth,  brought  in  a  great  iron  vessel.  Each  slave  had  a  horn, 
which  was  used  for  soup  or  water,  and  which,  when  done  with, 
he  had,  by  the  rule  enforced  among  themselves,  to  take  out  to 
the  fountain  in  the  courtyard  and  wash,  before  it  was  added  to 
the  pile  in  the  corner  of  the  room. 

The  cool  of  the  evening  aided  the  meal  in  restoring  the  en- 
ergies of  the  slaves.  Several  gathered  round  Gervaise,  and 
asked  questions  as  to  what  he  knew  of  the  prospects  of  an  early 
invasion  of  Rhodes;  but  as  soon  as  the  officer  left  the  room, 
closing  and  locking  the  door  after  him,  the  slaves  became  for 
the  most  part  silent.  A  few  men  sat  in  groups  together,  talk- 
ing in  undertones,  but  the  greater  number  threw  themselves 
down  on  the  rushes,  either  to  sleep  or  to  think  alone.  Ger- 
vaise was  struck  by  the  manner  in  which  most  of  them  lay, 
without  making  the  slightest  movement,  so  long  as  there  was 
light  to  enable  him  to  make  out  their  figures.  He  himself  ad- 
dressed two  or  three  of  them,  as  they  lay  with  their  eyes  wide 
open,  asking  questions  with  reference  to  the  work  ;  but  in  no 
case  did  he  receive  any  reply.  The  men  seemed  altogether 
unconscious  of  being  addressed,  being  absorbed  in  the  thought 
of  their  far-distant  homes  and  families  which  they  might  never 
see  again. 

Gervaise  walked  a  few  times  up  and  down  the  room,  and  as 
he  approached  a  silence  fell  each  time  upon  the  groups  of  men 
talking  together.  More  than  once  a  figure  rose  soon  afterwards 


156  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

from  the  ground,  and,  as  he  came  along  again,  asked  him  a 
few  questions  about  himself.  As  soon  as  it  was  dark,  he  lay 
down  in  a  vacant  space  on  the  rushes.  Shortly  afterwards 
talking  ceased  altogether,  and  there  was  quiet  in  the  vaulted 
room.  With  the  first  gleam  of  daylight  they  were  astir,  and, 
when  the  doors  were  opened,  poured  out  into  the  courtyard, 
where  all  had  a  wash  at  the  fountain.  Half  an  hour  later,  a 
meal,  precisely  similar  to  that  of  the  previous  evening,  was 
served  out ;  then  the  overseers  called  over  the  muster  roll,  the 
gangs  were  made  up,  and  each,  under  its  officer,  started  for 
its  work. 

Gervaise,  with  the  men  of  his  room,  proceeded  down  to  the 
port,  and  at  once  took  their  seats  on  the  benches  of  the  galley, 
one  foot  being  chained  to  a  ring  in  the  deck,  the  other  to  that 
of  a  companion  at  the  oar.  The  slaves  were  more  cheerful 
now.  As  there  was  no  work  to  do  at  present,  they  were  al- 
lowed to  talk,  and  an  occasional  laugh  was  heard,  for  the  sun 
and  the  brightness  of  the  day  cheered  them.  Many,  after 
years  of  captivity,  had  grown  altogether  reckless,  and  it  was 
among  these  that  there  was  most  talking ;  the  younger  men 
seemed,  for  the  most  part,  silent  and  moody. 

"  You  will  get  accustomed  to  it,"  the  man  next  to  Gervaise 
said  cheeringly.  "  When  I  first  came  here,  it  seemed  to  me 
that  I  could  not  support  the  life  for  a  month — that  the  fate  was 
too  dreadful  to  be  borne,  and  that  death  would  be  most  wel- 
come ;  but,  like  the  rest,  I  became  accustomed  to  it  in  time. 
After  all,  the  work  is  no  harder  than  one  would  do  at  home. 
There  is  no  stint  of  food,  and  it  is  no  worse  than  one  would 
have,  were  one  labouring  in  the  fields.  Were  it  not  for  the  loss 
of  those  we  love,  it  would  be  nothing ;  and  in  time  one  gets 
over  even  that.  I  have  long  ago  told  myself  that  if  they  are 
not  dead,  at  least  they  are  dead  to  me.  They  have  their  liv- 
ings to  get,  and  cannot  be  always  mourning,  and  I  have  tried 
to  forget  them,  as  they  must  have  forgotten  me." 

"  Do  you  work  hard? "  Gervaise  asked. 


WITH    THE    GALLEY-SLAVES  157 

"  No.  We  who  are  in  the  galleys  are  regarded  by  the  oth- 
ers with  envy.  Sometimes — often,  indeed — we  have  naught 
to  do  all  day.  We  bask  in  the  sun,  we  talk,  we  sleep,  we 
forget  that  we  are  slaves.  But,  generally,  we  go  out  for  an 
hour  or  two's  exercise;  that  is  well  enough,  and  keeps  us 
strong  and  in  health.  Only  when  we  are  away  on  voyages  is 
the  work  hard.  Sometimes  we  row  from  morning  to  night ; 
but  it  is  only  when  they  are  in  chase  of  another  craft  that  we 
have  really  to  exert  ourselves  greatly.  Then  it  is  terrible. 
We  may  be  doing  our  best,  our  very  best,  and  yet  to  the  im- 
patient knights  it  seems  that  we  might  do  more.  Then  they 
shout  to  the  overseer,  and  he  lays  his  whip  on  our  backs  with- 
out mercy.  Then  we  row  until  sometimes  we  drop,  senseless, 
off  the  benches.  But  this,  you  understand,  is  not  very  often ; 
and  though  the  work  on  a  cruise  is  long,  it  is  not  beyond  our 
strength.  Besides,  when  we  are  away  in  the  galley  there  is 
always  hope.  The  galley  may  meet  with  four  or  five  of  our 
ships,  and  be  captured,  or  a  storm  may  arise  and  dash  her  upon 
the  shore ;  and  though  many  would  lose  their  lives,  some 
might  escape,  and  each  man,  in  thinking  of  it,  believes  that 
he  will  be  one  of  the  fortunate  ones. 

"  Take  my  advice  :  always  look  cheerful  if  you  can  ;  always 
put  your  hand  on  the  oar  when  the  order  is  given,  and  row  as 
if  you  were  glad  to  be  at  work  again  ;  and  always  make  a  show, 
as  if  you  were  working  your  hardest.  Never  complain  when  you 
are  struck  unjustly,  and  always  speak  respectfully  to  the  over- 
seer. In  that  way  you  will  find  your  life  much  easier  than 
you  would  think.  You  will  be  chosen  for  small  boat  service  ; 
and  that  is  a  great  thing,  as  we  are  not  chained  in  the  small 
boats.  Some  men  are  foolish  and  obstinate,  but,  so  far  from 
doing  any  good,  this  only  brings  trouble  on  themselves ;  they 
come  in  for  punishment  daily,  they  are  closely  watched,  and 
their  lives  made  hells  for  them.  Even  as  a  help  to  escape  it 
pays  best  to  be  cheerful  and  alert.  We  all  think  of  escape, 
you  know,  though  it  is  seldom  indeed  that  a  chance  ever  comes 


158  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

to  any  of  us.  It  is  the  one  thing  except  death  to  look  forward 
to,  and  there  is  not  a  man  among  us  who  does  not  think  of  it 
scores  of  times  a  day  ;  but,  small  as  the  chance  is,  it  is  greatest 
for  those  who  behave  best.  For  instance,  it  is  they  only  who 
man  small  boats ;  and  when  a  small  boat  rows  ashore,  it  is 
always  possible  that  the  guard  may  be  careless — that  he  will 
keep  the  boat  at  the  landing-place,  instead  of  pushing  off  at 
once  into  deep  water,  as  he  ought  to  do — and  that  in  this  way 
a  chance  will,  sooner  or  later,  come  for  springing  ashore  and 
making  a  dash  for  liberty." 


CHAPTER  X 

A   PLOT   DISCOVERED 

THE  conversation  between  Gervaise  and  his  fellow-slave  was 
interrupted  by  the  arrival  at  the  side  of  the  quay  of  a 
party  of  knights.  Silence  instantly  fell  upon  the  slaves ;  all 
straightened  themselves  up  to  the  oars,  and  prepared  for  a  start. 
Among  the  knights  who  took  their  places  on  the  poop  Ger- 
vaise saw  with  amusement  his  friend  Ralph.  He  had  no  fear 
of  a  recognition,  for  the  darkly-stained  skin  and  the  black  hair 
had  so  completely  altered  him  that  when  he  had  looked  at  him- 
self in  a  mirror,  after  the  application  of  the  dye,  he  was  sur- 
prised to  find  that  he  would  not  have  known  it  to  be  his  own 
face.  Ralph  was  in  command  of  the  party,  which  consisted  of 
young  knights  who  had  but  recently  arrived  at  Rhodes  ;  and 
as  it  was  the  first  time  he  had  been  appointed  as  instructor, 
Gervaise  saw  that  he  was  greatly  pleased  at  what  he  rightly  re- 
garded as  promotion. 

The  galley  at  once  pushed  off  from  the  wharf,  and  rowed 
out  of  the  port.  The  work  was  hard  ;  but  as  the  slaves  were 
not  pressed  to  any  extraordinary  exertions,  Gervaise  did  not 


A   PLOT    DISCOVERED  159 

find  it  excessive.  He  congratulated  himself,  however,  that  the 
stain  was,  as  he  had  been  assured,  indelible,  save  by  time,  for 
after  a  few  minutes'  exercise  he  was  bathed  in  perspiration. 
As  the  galley  had  been  taken  out  only  that  instruction  might 
be  given  to  the  young  knights,  the  work  was  frequently 
broken.  Sometimes  they  went  ahead  at  full  speed  for  a  few 
hundred  yards,  as  if  to  chase  an  adversary ;  then  they  would 
swerve  aside,  the  slaves  on  one  side  rowing,  while  those  on 
the  other  backed,  so  as  to  make  a  rapid  turn.  Then  she  lay 
for  a  minute  or  two  immovable,  and  then  backed  water,  or 
turned  to  avoid  the  attack  of  an  imaginary  foe.  Then  for  an 
hour  she  lay  quiet,  while  the  knights,  divesting  themselves  of 
their  mantles  and  armour,  worked  one  of  the  guns  on  the  poop, 
aiming  at  a  floating  barrel  moored  for  the  purpose  a  mile  out 
at  sea.  At  eleven  o'clock  they  returned  to  the  port.  Bread 
and  water  were  served  out  to  the  slaves,  and  they  were  then 
permitted  to  lie  down  and  sleep,  the  galley  being  moored 
under  the  shadow  of  the  wall. 

At  four  o'clock  another  party  of  knights  came  down,  and 
the  work  was  similar  to  that  which  had  been  performed  in  the 
morning.  At  seven  o'clock  the  slaves  were  taken  back  to 
their  barracks. 

' '  Well,  what  do  you  think  of  your  work  ?  ' '  one  of  the 
slaves  asked  Gervaise,  as  they  ate  their  evening  meal. 

"  It  would  not  be  so  bad  if  it  was  all  like  that." 

' '  No.  But  I  can  tell  you  that  when  you  have  to  row  from 
sunrise  to  sunset,  with  perhaps  but  one  or  two  pauses  for  a  few 
minutes,  it  is  a  different  thing  altogether,  especially  if  the 
galley  is  carrying  despatches,  and  speed  is  necessary.  Then 
you  get  so  worn  out  and  exhausted,  that  you  can  scarce  move 
an  oar  through  the  water,  until  you  are  wakened  up  by  a 
smart  as  if  a  red-hot  iron  had  been  laid  across  your  shoulders. 
It  is  terrible  work  then.  The  whip  cracks  every  minute  across 
some  one's  back  ;  you  are  blinded  by  exhaustion  and  rage,  and 
you  feel  that  you  would  give  the  world  if  you  could  but  burst 


160  A    KNIGHT    OF   THE    WHITE    CROSS  . 

your  chain,  rush  on  your  taskmasters,  and  strike,  if  only  one 
blow,  before  you  are  killed." 

"  It  must  be  terrible,"  Gervaise  said.  "  And  do  you  never 
get  loose,  and  fall  upon  them  ?  ' ' 

The  man  shook  his  head. 

"  The  chains  are  too  strong,  and  the  watch  too  vigilant," 
he  said.  "  Since  I  came  here  I  have  heard  tales  of  crews  having 
freed  themselves  in  the  night,  and  fallen  upon  the  Christians, 
but  for  my  part  I  do  not  believe  in  them.  I  have  thought,  as 
I  suppose  every  one  of  us  has  thought,  how  such  a  thing  could 
be  done ;  but  as  far  as  I  know  no  one  has  hit  on  a  plan  yet. 
Now  and  then  men  have  managed  to  become  possessed  of  a  file, 
and  have,  by  long  and  patient  work,  sawn  through  a  chain,  and 
have,  .when  a  galley  has  been  lying  near  our  own  shore,  sprung 
overboard  and  escaped ;  but  for  every  attempt  that  succeeds 
there  must  be  twenty  failures,  for  the  chains  are  frequently  ex- 
amined, and  woe  be  to  the  man  who  is  found  to  have  been 
tampering  with  his.  But  as  to  a  whole  gang  getting  free  at 
once,  it  is  altogether  impossible,  unless  the  key  of  the  pad- 
locks could  be  stolen  from  an  overseer,  or  the  man  bribed  into 
aiding  us." 

"  And  that,  I  suppose,  is  impossible  ?  "  Gervaise  said. 

"  Certainly,  impossible  for  us  who  have  no  money  to  bribe 
them  with,  but  easy  enough  if  any  one  outside,  with  ample 
means,  were  to  set  about  it.  These  overseers  are,  many  of 
them,  sons  of  Turkish  mothers,  and  have  no  sympathy,  save 
that  caused  by  interest,  with  one  parent  more  than  another. 
Of  course,  they  are  brought  up  Christians,  and  taught  to  hold 
Moslems  in  abhorrence,  but  I  think  many  of  them,  if  they  had 
their  free  choice,  would  cross  to  the  mainland.  Here  they 
have  no  chance  of  ever  being  aught  but  what  they  are — over- 
seers of  slaves,  or  small  prison  officials.  They  are  despised  by 
these  haughty  knights,  and  hated  by  us,  while  were  they  to 
reach  the  mainland  and  adopt  their  mothers'  religion,  every- 
thing would  be  open  to  them.  All  followers  of  the  Prophet 


A    PLOT    DISCOVERED  161 

have  an  equal  chance,  and  one  may  be  a  soldier  to-day,  a  bey 
to-morrow,  and  a  pasha  a  year  hence,  if  he  be  brave,  or  astute, 
or  capable  in  any  way  beyond  his  fellows.  Men  like  these 
warders  would  be  sure  to  make  their  way. 

"  They  cannot  have  gathered  much  during  their  service, 
therefore  the  offer  of  a  large  sum  of  money  would  find  plenty 
among  them  eager  to  earn  it.  But,  you  see,  they  are  but  the 
inferiors.  On  our  voyages  on  board  the  galley,  the  knights 
inspect  our  fetters  twice  a  day,  and  the  keys  are  kept  in  the 
commander's  cabin.  For  an  hour  or  two,  when  we  are  not 
on  a  long  passage,  the  padlocks  are  unfastened,  in  order  that 
we  may  jump  over  and  bathe,  and  exercise  our  limbs  ;  but  at 
this  time  the  knights  are  always  on  guard,  and  as  we  are  without 
arms  we  are  altogether  powerless.  It  is  the  same  thing  here. 
The  senior  warders,  who  all  belong  to  the  Order,  although  of 
an  inferior  grade,  come  round,  as  you  have  seen,  to  examine 
our  fetters,  and  themselves  lock  and  bar  the  doors.  If  one  or 
two  of  these  could  be  corrupted,  escape  would  be  easy  enough." 

"  But  is  it  impossible  to  do  this  ?  "  Gervaise  asked  eagerly. 
"  My  father  has  money,  and  would  I  know  be  ready,  if  I 
could  communicate  with  him,  to  pay  a  handsome  sum,  if  sure 
that  it  would  result  in  my  obtaining  my  freedom." 

The  man  nodded  significantly. 

"  There  may  be  other  means  of  doing  it,"  he  said.  "  Per- 
haps it  will  not  be  long  before  you  hear  of  it.  You  seem  a 
stout  fellow,  and  full  of  spirit,  but,  as  yet,  anything  that  may 
be  going  on  is  known  but  to  a  few,  and  will  go  no  further  un- 
til the  time  comes  that  all  may  be  told.  I  think  not  so  badly 
of  men  of  our  faith  as  to  believe  that  any  one  would  betray  the 
secret  for  the  .sake  of  obtaining  his  own  freedom  and  a  big  re- 
ward ;  but  secrets,  when  known  by  many,  are  apt  to  leak  out. 
A  muttered  word  or  two  in  sleep,  or  the  ravings  of  one  down 
with  fever,  might  afford  ground  for  suspicion,  and  torture 
would  soon  do  the  rest.  I  myself  know  nothing  of  the  secret, 
but  I  do  know  that  there  is  something  going  on  which,  if  sue- 


162  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

cessful,  will  give  us  our  freedom.  I  am  content  to  know  no 
more  until  the  time  comes  ;  but  there  are  few,  save  those  en- 
gaged in  the  matter,  that  know  as  much  as  this,  and  you  can 
see  that  it  is  better  it  should  be  so.  Look  at  that  man  oppo- 
si  te  ;  he  has  been  here  fifteen  years ;  he  seldom  speaks  ;  he 
does  his  work,  but  it  is  as  a  brute  beast — despair  has  well-nigh 
turned  him  into  one.  Think  you  that  if  such  a  man  as  that 
were  to  know  that  there  is  hope,  he  would  not  be  so  changed 
that  even  the  dullest  would  observe  it.  I  see  you  are  a  brisk 
young  fellow,  and  I  say  to  you,  keep  up  your  courage.  The 
time  is  nearer  than  you  think  when  you  will  be  free  from  these 
accursed  shackles. ' ' 

Each  morning,  as  he  went  out  to  work  with  his  gang,  Ger- 
vaise  saw  the  servant  from  the  auberge  standing  near  ;  but  he 
made  no  sign.  He  was  satisfied  that  his  suspicions  had  been 
justified,  and  that  he  was  not  leading  this  life  in  vain,  but  he 
thought  it  better  to  wait  until  the  week  passed,  and  he  was 
taken  away  to  have  his  colour  renewed,  than  to  make  a  sign 
that  might  possibly  rouse  the  suspicions  of  his  comrades.  On 
the  eighth  morning,  when  the  door  of  the  ro~om  was  unlocked, 
the  overseer  said, — 

"  Number  36,  you  will  remain  here.  You  are  wanted  .for 
other  work." 

After  the  gang  had  left  the  prison,  the  overseer  returned. 

"  I  am  to  take  you  up  to  the  English  auberge.  The  knight 
who  handed  you  over  to  me  when  you  landed,  told  me  that 
you  might  be  wanted  as  a  servitor  ;  and  as  it  is  he  who  has  sent 
down,  it  may  be  that  a  vacancy  has  occurred.  If  so,  you  are 
in  luck,  for  the  servitors  have  a  vastly  better  time  of  it  than 
the  galley-slaves,  and  the  English  auberge  has  the  best  reputa- 
tion in  that  respect.  Come  along  with  me." 

The  English  auberge  was  one  of  the  most  handsome  of  the 
buildings  standing  in  the  great  street  of  the  Knights.  Its  archi- 
tecture was  Gothic  in  its  character,  and,  although  the  langue 
was  one  of  the  smallest  of  those  represented  at  Rhodes,  it  vied 


A   PLOT   DISCOVERED  163 

with  any  of  them  in  the  splendour  of  its  appointments.  Sir 
John  Boswell  was  standing  in  the  interior  courtyard. 

"  Wait  here  for  a  few  minutes,"  he  said  to  the  overseer. 
"  The  bailiff  will  himself  question  the  slave  as  to  his  accom- 
plishments ;  but  I  fancy  he  will  not  be  considered  of  sufficient 
age  for  the  post  that  is  vacant.  However,  if  this  should  not  be 
so,  I  shall  no  doubt  find  a  post  to  fit  him  ere  long,  for  he  seems 
a  smart  young  fellow,  and,  what  is  better,  a  willing  one,  and 
bears  himself  well  under  his  misfortunes. ' '  Then  he  motioned 
to  Gervaise  to  follow  him  to  the  bailiff's  apartments. 

"Well,  Sir  Gervaise,"  Sir  John  Kendall  exclaimed,  as  the 
door  closed  behind  him,  "  have  you  found  aught  to  justify  this 
cruel  penance  you  have  undertaken  ?  ' ' 

"As  to  the  penance,  Sir  John,  it  has  been  nothing  unsup- 
portable.  The  exercise  is  hard  enough,  but  none  too  hard  for 
one  in  good  health  and  strength,  and,  save  for  the  filth  of  the 
chamber  in  which  we  are  shut  up  at  night,  and  the  foul  state 
of  the  rushes  on  which  we  lie,  I  should  have  naught  to  com- 
plain of.  No,  I  have  as  yet  heard  nothing  of  a  surety — and 
yet  enough  to  show  me  that  my  suspicions  were  justified,  and 
that  there  is  a  plot  of  some  sort  on  foot,"  and  he  related  to  the 
two  knights  the  conversation  he  had  had  with  the  galley-slave. 

"  By  St.  George  !  "  the  bailiff  said,  "  you  have  indeed  been 
justified  in  your  surmises,  and  I  am  glad  that  I  attached  suffi- 
cient importance  to  your  suspicions  to  let  you  undertake  this 
strange  enterprise.  What  think  you,  Sir  John  Boswell?  " 

"  I  think  with  you,  that  Sir  Gervaise  has  fully  justified  his 
insistance  in  this  matter,  which  I  own  I  considered  to  be  hare- 
brained folly.  What  is  to  be  done  next,  Sir  Gervaise?  " 

"  That  is  what  I  have  been  turning  over  in  my  mind.  You 
see,  I  may  have  little  warning  of  what  is  going  to  take  place. 
I  may  not  hear  of  it  until  we  are  locked  up  for  the  night  and 
the  affair  is  on  the  point  of  taking  place,  and  it  will,  of  course, 
be  most  needful  that  I  shall  be  able  to  communicate  with  you 
speedily." 


164  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

"That,  of  course,  is  of  vital  importance,"  the  bailiff  said. 
"  But  how  is  it  to  be  managed  ?  " 

"  That  is  what  I  cannot  exactly  see,  Sir  John.  An  armed 
guard  remains  in  our  room  all  night.  But,  in  the  first  place, 
he  might  be  himself  in  the  plot,  and  if  not,  the  slaves  would 
almost  certainly  overpower  him  and  kill  him,  as  a  preliminary 
to  the  work  of  knocking  off  their  chains." 

' '  Is  there  a  window  to  the  room  ?  At  least, — of  course 
there  is  a  window,  but  is  it  within  your  reach?  " 

"  There  are  six  small  loop-holes — one  on  each  side  of  the 
door,  and  two  in  each  of  the  side  walls ;  they  are  but  four 
inches  across  and  three  feet  in  length,  and  there  are  two  cross- 
bars to  each ;  they  are  four  feet  from  the  floor. 

"  At  any  rate,  they  are  large  enough  for  your  arm  to  pass 
through,  Sir  Gervaise,  and  you  might  drop  a  strip  of  cloth  out." 

"  Certainly  I  could,  Sir  John.  I  could  easily  hide  a  piece 
of  white  cotton  a  yard  or  so  long  in  my  clothes,  scanty  as  these 
are,  and  could  certainly  manage,  unobserved,  to  drop  it  out- 
side the  window." 

"Then  the  rest  is  for  us  to  contrive,  Boswell.  We  must 
have  some  one  posted  in  the  yard  of  the  prison,  with  instruc- 
tions to  go  every  ten  minutes  throughout  the  night  to  see  if  a 
strip  of  white  cotton  has  been  dropped  out.  When  he  finds  it 
he  must  go  at  once  to  William  Neave,  the  governor.  He  is  a 
sturdy  Englishman,  and  there  is  no  fear  of  his  having  been 
bribed  to  turn  traitor ;  but  it  were  well  to  take  no  one  into 
our  confidence.  I  think  we  cannot  do  better  than  employ 
Ahmet  on  this  business,  as  he  already  knows  that  Sir  Gervaise 
is  masquerading  there.  We  will  have  William  Neave  up  here 
presently.  Tell  him  that  for  certain  reasons  we  wish  Ahmet  to 
pass  the  night  for  the  present  in  the  prison,  and  arrange  with 
him  on  what  excuse  we  can  best  bestow  him  there  without  ex- 
citing suspicion.  At  any  rate,  Sir  Gervaise,  that  is  our  affair." 

He  went  to  a  closet  and  took  out  a  white  mantle,  tore  a 
strip  off  the  bottom,  and  gave  it  to  Gervaise. 


A   PLOT    DISCOVERED  165 

"  It  would  be  best  not  to  keep  you  here  any  longer,"  he  said, 
"  so  renew  your  stain  while  I  speak.  As  soon  as  you  learn  the 
details  of  the  plot,  you  will  drop  this  out  from  the  loop-hole  on 
the  right-hand  side  of  the  door ;  that  is  to  say,  the  one  on  your 
right,  standing  inside.  If  the  affair  is  not  to  come  off  at  once, 
it  were  best  for  you  to  proceed  as  before.  Ahmet  will  be  out- 
side when  you  go  out  with  your  gang,  and  on  your  nodding  to 
him  we  will  make  some  excuse  to  take  you  away  on  your  re- 
turn. I  say  this  because  if  you  see  that  the  affair,  whatever  it 
is,  is  not  imminent,  you  might  think  it  better  to  remain  with 
them  longer,  so  as  to  learn  their  plans  more  fully,  instead  of 
having  the  thing  put  a  stop  to  at  once." 

"  I  understand,  Sir  John ;  but,  as  I  have  said,  I  do  not  think 
we  should  all  be  told  until  the  blow  is  ready  to  be  struck,  as 
they  would  be  afraid  that  some  one  might  inform  against  them, 
if  time  and  opportunity  were  granted  them." 

"  I  think  so  too,  Sir  Gervaise.  This  afternoon  we  will  call 
upon  the  grand  master,  for  we  have  no  means  of  knowing  how 
serious  or  how  extended  this  plot  may  be ;  it  may  include  only 
the  crew  of  a  single  galley,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  the  whole 
of  the  slaves  may  be  implicated  in  it.  It  is  evident,  therefore, 
that  the  matter  is  too  serious  to  be  kept  any  longer  from  his 
knowledge." 

Three  more  days  passed.  On  the  third  evening,  after  the 
allowance  of  broth  and  bread  had  been  consumed,  and  the  door 
was  closed  and  locked  upon  them  for  the  night,  three  or  four 
of  the  galley-slaves,  after  talking  eagerly  together,  beckoned 
to  the  others  to  gather  round  them  at  the  end  of  the  room 
farthest  from  the  door.  Two  of  them  took  up  arms-full  of  the 
bedding,  and  stuffed  it  into  the  side  windows.  Gervaise  saw, 
in  the  dim  light,  a  look  of  intense  excitement  on  the  faces  of 
the  slaves.  It  had  been  vaguely  known  among  them  that  a 
plot  was  in  hand,  although  but  few  had  been  admitted  into 
the  confidence  of  the  leaders.  Hitherto  all  had  feared  that  it 
concerned  only  a  small  number,  but  the  preparations  now 


166  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

made  to  insure  that  they  should  not  be  overheard,  showed  that, 
whatever  the  plan  might  be,  all  were  to  share  in  it. 

"Thanks  be  to  Allah,  the  All-powerful,"  one  of  the  men 
began,  ''my  lips  are  unsealed,  and  I  can  tell  you  the  great 
news  that  our  hour  for  escape  from  bondage  is  at  hand  !  We 
need  not  fear  the  warder  there,"  he  went  on,  as  several  eyes 
were  turned  apprehensively  towards  the  guard,  who,  with  his 
spear  beside  him,  was  leaning  carelessly  against  the  wall  at  the 
farther  end,  looking  through  the  window  into  the  courtyard  ; 
' '  he  is  with  us.  You  must  know  that  for  the  last  two  months 
an  agent  from  Constantinople  has  been  on  the  Island,  and  has 
been  engaged  in  arranging  this  affair.  Two  of  our  taskmasters 
belonging  to  the  Order  have  been  bribed  by  large  sums  of 
money,  and  several  of  the  overseers,  who  are  half  of  our  blood, 
have  eagerly  embraced  the  prospect  of  returning  to  their 
mothers'  country,  and  of  avowing  openly  their  belief  in  our 
religion.  These,  again,  have  bought  over  many  of  the  guards, 
ours  included,  and  to-night  all  will  be  ready  for  action.  Those 
not  of  our  party  will  be  killed  without  ceremony.  Duplicate 
keys  have  been  made  of  all  the  padlocks  of  the  fetters ;  the 
guards  who  are  with  us  have  each  one  of  them,  the  others  will 
have  been  slipped  into  the  hands  of  one  man  in  each  gang  as 
they  returned  to-night  from  work.  The  overseers  who  are  in 
the  plot  will,  at  midnight,  go  quietly  round  and  unlock  the 
doors,  and  remove  the  bars  from  the  outside.  We  have,  there- 
fore, only  to  overcome  the  eight  or  ten  men  who  patrol  the 
prison ;  and  as  we  shall  have  the  arms  of  the  guards,  some 
thirty  in  number,  we  shall  make  quick  work  of  them. 

"  The  two  guards  at  the  outside  gates  must,  of  course,  be 
killed.  Duplicates  of  the  keys  have  been  made,  and  will  be 
hidden  in  a  spot  known  to  some  of  our  party,  close  to  the 
gate.  Thus  we  have  but  to  issue  out  and  rush  down,  in  a 
body,  to  the  port.  I  and  another  are  to  take  the  arms  of  our 
guard,  and  two  others  are  told  off  in  each  room  to  do  the 
same.  That  will  give  us  sixty  armed  men.  'We  shall  make 


A    PLOT    DISCOVERED  167 

very  short  work  of  the  guards  at  the  gate  leading  into  the  port. 
Then  twenty  of  us  are  to  run  along  the  mole  to  Fort  St.  Nich- 
olas, twenty  to  the  Tower  of  St.  Michael,  and  twenty  to  that 
of  St.  John.  There  will  be,  at  the  most,  but  three  or  four 
men  keeping  watch  at  each  fort,  and  thus  we  shall  have  in  our 
possession  the  three  forts  commanding  the  entrance  to  the 
harbour.  There  are,  as  you  know,  six  galleys  manned  by 
crews  from  our  prison  there.  The  crew  of  each  galley  will 
embark  upon  it,  and  man  the  oars ;  the  rest  will  divide  them- 
selves among  the  galleys.  Before  starting,  we  shall  seitfe  and 
set  fire  to  all  other  galleys  and  ships  in  the  port.  The  gangs 
in  four  of  the  rooms  have  been  told  off  specially  for  this  duty. 
Before  firing  them,  they  are  to  take  out  such  provisions  as 
they  may  find,  and  transport  them  to  the  galleys.  We  who 
take  the  forts  are  provided  with  hammers  and  long  nails,  to 
drive  down  the  vent-holes  of  the  cannon  ;  when  we  have  done 
this,  we  are  to  wait  until  one  of  the  galleys  fetches  us  off.  Ten 
minutes  should  be  ample  time  for  all  there  is  to  be  done,  and 
even  if  the  alarm  is  given  at  once,  we  shall  be  away  long  be- 
fore the  knights  can  be  aroused  from  sleep,  buckle  on  their 
armour,  and  get  down  to  the  port." 

Exclamations  of  delight  and  approbation  burst  from  his 
hearers. 

"  Then  it  is  only  we  of  this  prison  who  are  in  the  plot  ?  " 
one  said. 

' '  Yes.  In  the  first1  place,  it  would  have  been  too  dangerous 
to  attempt  to  free  all.  In  the  second,  the  galleys  would  not 
carry  them  ;  we  shall  be  closely  packed  as  it  is,  for  there  are 
over  a  thousand  here.  I  hear  that  there  was  a  talk  of  freeing 
all,  and  that  we,  instead  of  embarking  at  first,  should  make 
for  the  other  prisons,  burst  open  the  doors,  and  rescue  the 
others  ;  but  by  the  time  we  could  do  so  the  knights  would  be 
all  in  arms,  and  our  enterprise  would  fail  altogether,  for  as  but 
a  small  proportion  of  us  can  obtain  weapons,  we  could  not 
hope  to  overcome  them.  Were  it  not  for  the  strong  wall  that 


1G8  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

separates  their  quarter  from  the  town,  we  might  make  straight 
for  their  houses  and  slay  them  before  the  alarm  could  be  given. 
As  it  is,  that  would  be  impossible,  and  therefore  the  plan  will 
be  carried  out  as  I  have  told  you.  The  loss  of  all  their  galleys 
and  of  over  one  thousand  slaves  will  be  a  heavy  blow  for  them. 
Great  pains  have  been  taken  to  prevent  confusion  when  we 
reach  the  port.  The  men  in  each  room  have  been  instructed 
as  to  the  galleys  on  which  they  are  to  embark.  As  for  you, 
you  know  precisely  what  is  to  be  done  ;  you  will  simply  take 
your  places,  and  then  wait  until  all  are  on  board.  No  galley 
is  to  push  out  from  the  wharf  until  the  last  man  of  those  em- 
ployed in  burning  the  ships  has  returned,  with  the  provisions 
found  in  them.  Then  the  order  will  be  given  by  the  man  who 
has  arranged  all  this,  and  the  six  galleys  will  put  out  together. 
One  is  to  row  to  each  of  the  forts  to  carry  off  the  party  that 
will  have  been  engaged  in  silencing  its  cannon.  Our  galley  is 
to  row  to  St.  Nicholas,  and  take  off  the  twenty  men  I  shall 
lead  there.  There  is  no  possibility  of  failure.  Everything 
has,  you  see,  been  arranged.  One  of  the  overseers  who  is  in 
the  plot  walked  by  my  side  as  we  returned  from  the  port,  and 
gave  me  the  instructions,  and  all  the  others  will  have  been 
told  in  the  same  way,  or  else  by  the  guards  in  charge  of 
them." 

The  gang  now  broke  up  into  little  groups,  talking  excitedly 
over  the  unlooked-for  news,  and  exulting  over  the  speedy 
advent  of  liberty.  Gervaise  strolled  carelessly  to  the  window, 
and  dropped  out  the  white  strip  of  stuff.  It  was  now  quite 
dark,  and  there  was  no  fear  of  any  one  observing  the  move- 
ment. Then  he  joined  the  others.  After  an  hour  and  a  half 
had  passed  he  heard  footsteps  approaching  the  door.  There 
was  a  pause;  then  the  outside  bars  were  taken  down,  and 
a  key  turned  in  the  lock.  A  deep  silence  fell  on  the  slaves. 
Then  a  voice  called, — 

"  Number  36  !" 

"What  is  it?"  replied  Gervaise,  without  raising  himself 


A    PLOT    DISCOVERED  169 

from  his  seat  on  the  bedding.  "  I  have  done  my  share  of 
work  to-day,  and  earned  my  night's  sleep." 

"  It  is  a  knight  from  the  English  auberge  ;  he  has  come  to 
fetch  you.  It  seems  that  you  are  to  go  there  as  a  servitor." 

"  What  a  cursed  fortune,"  Gervaise  muttered,  in  Turkish, 
"just  when  a  road  to  freedom  is  open  !  I  have  a  good  mind 
to  say  I  am  ill,  and  cannot  go  till  the  morning." 

"  No,  no  !  "  one  of  the  others  exclaimed.  "  They  would 
only  drag  you  out,  and  when  they  saw  that  there  was 
naught  the  matter  with  you,  would  suspect  that  there  must  be 
some  reason  why  you  did  not  want  to  go,  when,  as  every  one 
knows,  the  position  of  the  servitors  is  in  every  way  preferable 
to  ours." 

"  Now  then,  why  are  you  delaying  ?  "  a  voice  said  sharply, 
and  a  warder  entered  with  alighted  torch.  "  Get  up,  you  lazy 
hound  !  It  will  be  worse  for  you  if  I  have  to  speak  again." 

"  I  am  coming,"  Gervaise  grumbled.     "  I  was  just  asleep." 

He  rose,  as  if  reluctantly,  and  went  forward.  The  warder 
gave  him  an  angry  push,  followed  him  out,  and  locked  and 
barred  the  door  after  him. 

"  I  suppose  this  is  the  right  man  ?  "  Sir  John  Boswell  said. 

"This  is  Number  36,  Sir  Knight,  the  same  who  was 
taken  over  to  your  auberge  the  other  day,"  and  he  held  the 
light  close  to  Gervaise's  face. 

"Yes,  that  is  the  man.  Follow  me,"  he  added,  in  Turk- 
ish. The  gate  of  the  courtyard  was  unbarred,  and  they 
passed  out  unquestioned.  Sir  John  strolled  on  ahead.  Ger- 
vaise followed  him  a  pace  or  two  behind.  Not  until  they 
had  passed  through  the  gate  of  the  castle  did  Sir  John  turn. 

"  I  have  not  spoJcen  to  you,"  he  said,  "  as  we  may  have 
been  watched.  Keep  your  news  until  we  reach  the  auberge" 

Upon  entering  it  they  went  up  at  once  to  Sir  John  Ken- 
dall's apartments. 

"Well,  Sir  Gervaise,  the  strip  of  cotton  was  brought  to  us 
safely.  What  is  your  news  ?" 


170  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE    CROSS 

"It  is  very  serious,  Sir  John,  and  I  have  been  in  terrible 
anxiety  since  I  dropped  it  out,  lest  it  should  not  come  to 
hand  in  time.  As  it  is,  you  have  till  midnight  to  make  your 
preparations. ' ' 

He  then  repeated  the  statement  made  by  the  galley-slave. 

"By  my  faith,"  Sir  John  Kendall  exclaimed,  "this  is  a 
pretty  plot  indeed  !  And  had  it  succeeded,  as  it  certainly 
would  have  done  but  for  your  vigilance,  it  would  have  been 
a  heavy  blow  to  us.  The  burning  of  all  our  galleys  would 
have  crippled  us  sorely,  and  the  loss  of  over  a  thousand  slaves 
would  have  been  a  serious  one  indeed,  when  we  so  urgently 
require  them  for  completing  our  defences.  Get  rid  of  those 
clothes  at  once,  Sir  Gervaise,  and  don  your  own.  We  must 
go  straight  to  the  grand  master.  You  will  find  your  clothes 
and  armour  in  the  next  room.  I  had  them  taken  there  as  soon 
as  your  token  was  brought  me." 

In  a  few  minutes  Gervaise  returned  in  his  usual  attire,  and 
with  his  armour  buckled  on.  The  two  knights  were  already  in 
their  coats-of-mail,  and  leaving  the  auberge  they  went  to  the 
grand  master's  palace.  A  servitor  had  already  been  sent  to 
D'Aubusson  to  inform  him  that  they  were  coming,  and  he 
advanced  to  meet  them  as  they  entered. 

"  Welcome,  Sir  Gervaise  !  "  he  said.  "  Whether  your  news 
be  good  or  bad,  whether  you  have  found  that  it  is  a  general 
rising  of  the  slaves  that  is  intended,  or  a  plot  by  which  a 
handful  of  slaves  may  seize  a  boat  and  escape,  the  gratitude  of 
the  Order  is  no  less  due  to  you  for  the  hardships  and  humilia- 
tions you  have  undergone  on  its  behalf." 

"  It  concerns  but  one  prison  :  that  of  St.  Pelagius." 

"  The  largest  of  them,"  the  grand  master  put  in. 

"  The  whole  of  the  slaves  there  are  to  be  liberated  at  twelve 
o'clock  to-night,  are  to  seize  the  three  water  towers  and  to 
spike  the  guns,  to  burn  all  the  shipping  in  the  harbour,  to 
make  off  with  six  galleys,  and  destroy  the  rest." 

"  By  St.  John  !  "  D'Aubusson  exclaimed,  "  this  is  indeed 


A    PLOT   DISCOVERED  171 

a  serious  matter.  But  tell  me  all  about  it.  There  must  be 
treachery  indeed  at  work  for  such  a  scheme  to  be  carried  out." 

Gervaise  now  told  him  all  the  details  he  had  learned. 

"  So  two  of  the  Order,  though  but  of  the  inferior  grade,  are 
in  the  plot?"  the  grand  master  said;  "and  several  of  the 
overseers  ?  One  of  the  villains  is,  of  course,  the  man  you  saw 
this  Greek  talking  with.  We  must  get  hold  of  the  other  if  we 
can.  As  to  the  slaves,  now  that  we  have  warning,  there  is  an 
end  of  the  matter,  though  without  such  warning  they  would 
surely  have  succeeded,  for  the  plans  are  well  laid,  and  they 
would  have  been  at  sea  before  we  could  have  gathered  in  any 
force  at  the  port.  If  it  were  not  that  it  would  cost  the  lives  of 
many  of  the  warders  and  of  the  prison  guards,  I  should  say  we 
ought  to  take  post  outside  the  gate,  for  we  should  then  catch 
the  traitors  who  are  to  accompany  them.  As  it  is,  we  must  be 
beforehand  with  them.  A  hundred  men  will  be  more  than 
ample  for  our  purpose.  Do  you  take  fifty  of  your  knights, 
Sir  John  Kendall,  and  I  will  draw  fifty  of  those  of  Auvergne. 
At  eleven  o'clock  we  will  meet  at  the  gate  leading  down  into 
the  town,  and  will  march  to  the  private  entrance  of  the  gov- 
ernor's house.  I  will  go  in  first  with  a  few  of  you,  tell  him 
what  we  have  discovered,  and  post  guards  to  prevent  any  one 
from  leaving  his  house.  Then,  having  admitted  the  others, 
we  will  go  quietly  out  and  place  a  party  at  each  door  of  the 
overseers'  house,  with  orders  to  seize  any  who  may  come  out. 
The  rest,  in  small  parties,  will  then  go  round  the  prison,  and, 
entering  each  room,  show  the  slaves  that  their  plot  has  been 
discovered.  This  we  must  do  to  save  the  lives  of  the  guards 
who  may  be  faithful  to  their  trust.  As  to  the  higher  officials 
engaged  in  the  affair,  we  must  obtain  their  names  from  the 
overseers  or  slaves.  It  is  not  likely  that  the  two  traitors  will 
quit  their  houses,  as  they  will  leave  the  matter  in  the  hands  of 
the  overseers,  who,  as  you  say,  intend  to  first  open  the  doors, 
and  then  to  accompany  the  slaves  in  their  escape.  Do  not 
warn  the  knights  until  it  is  nearly  time  to  start,  Sir  John. 


172  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

The  less  stir  made  the  better,  for  no  one  can  say  whether  they 
may  not  have  suborned  some  of  the  servitors  to  send  instant 
news  of  any  unusual  movements  in  any  of  the  auberges" 

At  half-past  ten  Sir  John  Kendall  went  round  among  the 
knights  and  bade  fifty  of  them  arm  themselves  quietly,  and 
proceed,  one  by  one,  down  to  the  gate,  and  there  await  orders. 
Up  to  this  time  Gervaise  had  remained  in  the  bailiffs  room, 
so  as  to  avoid  the  questioning  that  would  take  place,  and  he 
went  down  to  the  gate  with  the  bailiff  and  Sir  John  Boswell. 

The  knights  assembled  rapidly.  None  were  aware  of  the 
reason  for  which  they  had  been  called  out  at  such  an  hour,  and 
there  was  a  buzz  of  talk  and  conjecture  until  Sir  John  Kendall 
arrived.  He  was  followed  by  four  of  the  servants,  who  at  once 
lighted  the  torches  they  carried,  when  he  proceeded  to  go 
through  the  roll,  and  found  that  the  muster  was  complete. 
Many  of  the  knights  had  gazed  in  some  surprise  at  Gervaise, 
whose  dark  complexion  altogether  concealed  his  identity,  and 
it  was  supposed  that  he  must  be  some  newly  arrived  knight, 
though  none  had  heard  that  any  ship  had  entered  the  harbour 
that  day. 

Two  or  three  minutes  later  fifty  knights  of  the  langue  of 
Auvergne  came  down,  headed  by  the  grand  master  himself, 
whose  appearance  greatly  heightened  the  surprise  of  the  Eng- 
lish knights.  The  torches  were  now  extinguished,  the  gate 
thrown  open,  and  the  party  descended  into  the  town.  Ger- 
vaise had  purposely  fallen  in  by  the  side  of  Harcourt. 

"  You  are  but  newly  arrived,  Sir  Knight  ?  "  the  latter  said, 
as  they  moved  off. 

"  Not  so  very  newly,  Ralph,"  Gervaise  replied. 

"What  !  is  it  you,  Gervaise?"  Harcourt  exclaimed,  with 
a  start  of  surprise.  "  Why,  I  did  not  know  you,  though  I 
looked  hard  at  you  in  the  torch-light.  What  have  you  done 
with  yourself?  Where  have  you  been  ?  Do  you  know  what 
all  this  is  about?  " 

"  I  cannot  tell  you  now,  Ralph.     You  must  be  content  to 


A    PLOT    DISCOVERED  173 

know  that  I  have  been  in  prison,  and  working  in  the  gal- 
leys." 

"  The  saints  defend  us  !  Why,  what  on  earth  had  you 
done  to  entail  such  punishment  as  that.  It  is  an  outrage. 
The  grand  master  and  the  council  have  the  right  to  expel  a 
knight  from  the  Order  after  due  trial  and  investigation,  but 
not  to  condemn  him  to  such  penalties  as  the  galleys.  It  is  an 
outrage  upon  the  whole  Order,  and  I  would  say  so  to  the 
grand  master  himself." 

"  There  was  no  outrage  in  it,  Ralph.  Wait  until  you  hear 
the  whole  story.  That  I  -have  not  disgraced  you,  you  may 
judge  from  the  fact  that  I  am  in  the  armour  and  mantle  of 
the  Order,  and  that,  as  you  saw,  I  came  down  with  Sir  John 
Kendall  himself." 

There  were  no  people  about  in  the  streets,  though  the  lights 
still  burned  on  a  few  of  the  roofs.  For  a  short  distance  the 
knights  marched  down  towards  the  port,  and  then  turned 
down  a  street  to  the  right.  After  a  few  minutes'  marching 
they  halted  under  a  high  wall  which  all  knew  to  be  that  of  the 
prison  of  St.  Pelagius.  Six  knights  were  posted  at  the  main 
entrance,  with  orders  that  none  should  be  allowed  to  leave  the 
prison,  and  that  any  persons  who  came  up  to  the  gate  were  to 
be  at  once  seized  and  made  prisoners.  The  rest  marched  on 
to  a  small  door  leading  into  the  governor's  house.  Here  they 
were  halted,  and  told  to  wait  till  called  in  ;  six  knights  of 
England,  and  as  many  of  Auvergne,  being  told  off  to  accom- 
pany the  grand  master  and  Sir  John  Kendall.  A  note  had 
been  sent  to  the  governor,  informing  him  that  the  grand 
master  intended  to  visit  the  prison  at  eleven  o'clock,  but  that 
the  matter  was  to  be  kept  an  absolute  secret ;  and  that  the 
governor  himself  was  to  be  down  at  the  gate  to  admit  him. 


A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 


CHAPTER   XI 

IN   COMMAND   OF   A   GALLEY 

WILLIAM  NEAVE,  the  governor  of  the  prison,  looked 
astonished  indeed  when,  upon  his  opening  the  door,  the 
grand  master  and  the  bailiff  of  the  English  langue,  with  the 
twelve  knights  behind  them,  entered.  He  had  been  puzzled 
when,  four  days  before,  he  had  received  an  order  from  the 
grand  master  that  Ahmet,  a  servitor  in  the  auberge  of  the 
English  langue,  should  be  permitted  to  pass  the  night  in  his 
house,  with  authority  to  move  freely  and  without  question,  at 
any  hour,  in  the  courtyard  of  the  gaol,  and  to  depart  at  any 
hour,  secretly  and  without  observation,  by  the  private  gate. 
Still  more  had  he  been  surprised  when  he  received  the  message 
that  the  grand  master  would  pay  him  a  secret  visit  at  eleven 
o'clock  at  night. 

"  Let  no  word  be  spoken  until  we  are  in  your  apartments," 
D'Aubusson  said  in  a  low  voice,  as  he  entered.  "  But  first  lead 
four  of  these  knights  and  post  them  so  that  none  can  enter  the 
gaol  from  the  house.  If  there  are  more  than  four  doors  or 
windows  on  that  side,  you  must  post  a  larger  number.  It  is 
imperative  that  there  shall  be  no  communication  whatever  be- 
tween your  servants  and  the  gaol. ' ' 

As  soon  as  this  was  done,  the  rest  of  the  party  were  taken 
to  the  governor's  rooms. 

"  I  can  now  explain  to  you  all,"  the  grand  master  said, 
"  the  reason  of  our  presence  here.  I  have  learned  that  at 
twelve  to-night  there  will  be  a  general  rising  of  the  slaves  in 
this  prison,  and  that,  aided  by  treachery,  they  will  free  them- 
selves from  their  fetters,  overpower  and  slay  such  of  the  guards 
in  their  rooms  as  have  not  been  bribed,  throw  open  the  gates, 


IN    COMMAND    OF   A    GALLEY  175 

make  their  way  down  to  the  port,  burn  all  the  shipping  there, 
and  make  off  in  the  six  galleys  manned  by  them,  having  first 
overpowered  the  sentries  in  the  three  forts  commanding  the 
entrance,  and  spiked  the  guns." 

Exclamations  of  astonishment  burst  from  the  knights,  who 
now,  for  the  first  time,  learnt  the  reason  of  their  being  called 
out.  The  governor  listened  with  an  expression  of  stupefaction. 

"With  all  deference  to  your  Highness,"  he  said  hesitat- 
ingly, "  it  seems  to  me  that  some  one  must  have  been  deceiv- 
ing you  with  this  tale.  It  is  altogether  incredible  that  such  a 
plot  should  have  been  hatched  without  a  whisper  of  the  mat- 
ter coming  to  my  ears.  It  could  only  be  possible  were  there, 
not  one  but  many,  traitors  among  the  officials ;  if  this  is  so, 
then  indeed  am  I  a  dull  ass,  and  unfit  for  my  duty  here,  of 
which  I  shall  pray  you  to  relieve  me,  and  to  order  such  punish- 
ment as  the  council  may  deem  just  to  be  allotted  to  me  for 
having  so  signally  been  hoodwinked." 

"  My  news  is  sure,"  the  grand  master  said ;  "  but  I  deem 
not  that  you  are  in  any  way  to  blame  in  the  matter.  The 
plot  has  been  matured,  not  as  a  consequence  of  any  laxity  of 
discipline  in  the  prison,  but  from  deliberate  treachery,  against 
which  no  mortal  being  can  guard.  The  traitors  are  two  of  the 
officials  who,  being  members  of  the  Order,  none  would  suspect 
of  connivance  in  such  a  deed.  With  them  are  several — I  know 
not  how  many — under-officials,  warders,  and  guards  ;  all  these 
have  been  bribed  by  an  emissary  from  Constantinople,  now  in 
the  town,  and  who  is  doubtless  furnished  with  large  means.  It 
is  well,  indeed,  for  the  Order,  that  this  terrible  act  of  treach- 
ery has  been  discovered  in  time  to  prevent  the  plot  from  com- 
ing to  a  head,  for  the  loss  of  all  our  galleys,  to  say  nothing  of 
the  disgrace  of  having  been  thus  bearded  by  slaves,  would  be 
a  very  heavy  blow  to  it. 

"  Now  that  the  house  is  safely  guarded,  William  Neave,  you 
can  admit  the  rest  of  the  knights,  who  are  waiting  outside. 
Then  you  will,  in  the  first  place,  conduct  a  party,  and  post 


176  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

them  so  that  they  may  arrest,  as  they  come  out  to  perform 
their  share  of  the  work,  all  officials,  warders,  and  guards,  of 
whatever  rank.  When  you  have  posted  knights  to  carry  out 
this — and  I  need  not  say  that  the  operation  must  be-performed 
as  silently  as  possible,  for  it  is  above  all  things  necessary  that 
the  men  concerned  shall  have  no  suspicion  that  their  plot  has 
been  discovered — you  will  conduct  other  parties  to  the  various 
rooms  occupied  by  the  slaves.  The  guards  on  duty  inside 
will  be  made  prisoners.  The  doors  will  then  be  locked  and 
barred  as  before.  The  appearance  of  the  knights  and  the  arrest 
of  the  guards  will  be  sufficient  to  show  the  slaves  that  their  plot 
has  been  discovered,  and  there  will  be  no  fear  of  their  making 
any  attempt  to  carry  it  into  execution.  I  will  myself  post  the 
main  body  of  the  knights  in  the  courtyard.  The  arrest  of  the 
guards  is  to  be  carried  out  at  once,  as  all  those  not  concerned 
in  the  plot  would  be  killed  when  the  hour  comes  for  the  rising. 
Therefore  this  part  of  the  business  must  be  carried  out  imme- 
diately. I  should  not,  however,  lead  the  guards  away  to  a 
cell,  for  the  less  tramping  of  feet  the  better.  Therefore  I  shall 
place  two  knights  in  each  room,  and  beg  them  to  remain  in- 
side in  charge  until  the  traitors  outside  are  secured." 

The  knights  outside  were  now  marched  up.  The  grand 
master  ordered  half  those  of  Auvergne  to  go  round  to  the  main 
gate,  which  would  be  opened  for  them  by  the  governor  •  they 
were  to  enter  quietly,  and  remain  in  a  body  close  to  it  until 
they  received  further  orders.  Sir  John  Kendall  told  off  the 
rest  of  the  knights  to  the  various  duties  of  watching  the  houses 
occupied  by  the  officials  and  warders,  and  of  entering  the 
prison  rooms  and  remaining  in  them  on  guard.  The  gov- 
ernor, with  his  private  servants,  bearing  a  supply  of  torches, 
was  to  lead  them  to  the  various  cells,  and  unlock  the  doors. 
The  knights  were  enjoined  to  move  as  noiselessly  as  possible, 
and  to  avoid  all  clashing  of  arms  against  armour. 

The  governor  produced  a  number  of  cloths  intended  to  be 
served  out  to  the  slaves.  Strips  of  these  were  cut  off  and 


IN   COMMAND    OF   A   GALLEY  177 

wrapped  round  the  feet  of  the  English  knights,  so  as  to  deaden 
the  sound  of  their  boots  on  the  stone  pavement.  Then,  ac- 
companied by  the  grand  master  and  Sir  John  Kendall,  he 
went  the  round  of  the  cells. 

In  some  of  these  the  slaves  were  found  standing  up  in  an  at- 
titude of  eager  expectation,  which,  as  the  door  opened,  and  the 
light  of  the  torches  showed  a  party  of  knights,  changed  into  one 
of  terror  and  consternation.  Scarce  a  word  was  spoken.  The 
guard  was  ordered  to  lay  down  his  arms,  and  to  take  one  of  the 
torches.  Two  knights  placed  themselves,  one  on  each  side  of 
him,  with  drawn  swords.  The  door  was  again  locked  and 
barred,  and  the  party  proceeded  to  the  next  cell.  In  less  than 
a  quarter  of  an  hour  this  part  of  the  work  was  finished,  and 
D'Aubusson,  Sir  John  Kendall,  and  the  governor,  then  took 
up  their  station  with  a  party  of  knights  who,  concealed  behind 
a  buttress,  were  watching  the  doors  of  the  officials'  houses. 

Ten  minutes  later  one  of  these  doors  was  heard  to  open,  and 
five  dark  figures  came  noiselessly  out.  They  were  allowed  to 
go  a  short  distance,  in  order  to  see  if  any  others  followed ; 
but  as  no  others  came  out,  the  governor  stepped  forward. 

"  Whither  are  you  going,  at  this  time  of  night  ?  "   he  asked. 

There  was  a  momentary  pause,  a  few  hasty  words  were  ex- 
changed, then  the  five  men  rushed  towards  him  with  bared 
swords  or  knives  ;  but  before  they  reached  him  the  knights 
poured  out  from  their  hiding  place. 

"  We  are  betrayed,"  one  of  the  men  shouted  in  Turkish. 
"  Fight  to  the  last.  Better  be  killed  than  tortured  and  exe- 
cuted. ' '  With  a  yell  of  fury  and  despair,  they  rushed  upon  the 
knights.  So  desperate  was  their  attack  that  the  latter  were 
forced  to  use  their  swords,  which  indeed,  burning  with  rage  at 
the  treachery  of  these  men,  they  were  not  backward  in  doing, 
and  in  less  than  a  minute  the  five  traitors  lay,  with  cloven 
heads,  dead  on  the  pavement. 

"  It  is  as  well  so,"  D'Aubusson  said,  looking  sternly  down 
upon  them  ;  "  perhaps  better  so,  since  it  has  saved  us  the  scan- 


178  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

dal  of  their  trial.  We  might  have  learned  more  from  them,  but 
we  have  learnt  enough,  since;  doubtless,  they  have  no  accom- 
plices among  the  warders,  or  they  would  have  been  with  them. 
Now  we  will  deal  with  the  arch-traitors.  There  is  no  need 
for  further  concealment ;  the  noise  of  this  fray  will  assuredly 
have  been  heard  by  them,  for  they  will  be  listening  for  the 
sounds  that  would  tell  them  the  slaves  had  been  liberated." 

Followed  by  the  knights,  he  went  to  the  door  of  the  house 
occupied  by  the  overseers,  all  of  whom  were  members  of  the 
lower  branch  of  the  Order.  It  was  indeed  evident  that  an 
alarm  had  been  given  there,  for  lights  appeared  at  the  win- 
dows. As  they  opened  the  door  and  entered  the  hall,  several 
half-dressed  men  rushed  down  the  stairs  with  drawn  swords, 
two  of  them  carrying  torches  in  their  left  hands.  As  the  light 
fell  upon  the  figures  of  the  grand  master  and  the  knights,  they 
paused  in  astonishment. 

"There  is  treachery  at  work  in  the  prison,"  D'Aubusson 
said  quietly.  "  I  pray  you  to  collect  your  comrades  and  to 
assemble  here  at  once." 

In  a  minute  or  two  some  twenty  officials  were  gathered  in 
the  hall. 

"  Are  all  here  ?  "  D'Aubusson  asked  the  governor. 

The  latter  counted  the  men. 

"There  are  two  short,"  he  said, — "  Pietro  Romano  and 
Karl  Schumann.  They  occupy  the  same  room.  Go  and  fetch 
them  down,  four  of  you." 

The  four  men  nearest  to  the  stairs  at  once  went  up  with  two 
torches.  They  returned  in  a  minute. 

"  The  door  is  fastened  on  the  inside,  and  we  can  obtain  no 
response. ' ' 

"  Fetch  an  axe  and  break  it  in,"  the  grand  master  ordered. 
"  Sir  John  Boswell,  do  you,  with  some  other  knights,  take 
post  without ;  they  may  attempt  to  escape  by  the  window, 
though,  as  we  hold  the  gates,  it  would  avail  them  little.  Sir 
Gervaise  Tresham,  do  you  follow  us." 


IN   COMMAND    OF   A   GALLEY  179 

Gervaise,  who  had  been  placed  with  the  party  watching  the 
house,  followed  the  grand  master  and  governor  upstairs.  A 
few  blows  with  an  axe  splintered  the  door ;  its  fastenings  gave 
way,  and  they  entered  the  room.  The  window  was  open,  and 
two  figures  lay  prostrate  on  the  ground  near  it. 

"I  half  expected  this,"  the  grand  master  said.  "They 
were  listening  there.  The  conflict  in  the  yard  told  them  that 
the  plot  had  been  discovered,  and  as  they  saw  us  approaching 
the  house,  they  dared  not  meet  the  punishment  of  their  crimes, 
and  have  fallen  by  their  own  daggers.  Put  a  torch  close  to 
their  faces.  Sir  Gervaise,  do  you  recognise  in  either  of  these 
men  the  official  you  saw  in  conversation  with  the  Greek?  " 

Gervaise  stepped  forward  and  examined  the  men's  faces. 

"  This  is  the  man,"  he  said,  pointing  to  one  of  them.  "  I 
marked  him  so  closely  that  I  cannot  be  mistaken. ' ' 

"  That  is  Pietro  Romano,"  the  governor  said ;  "he  was  an 
able  officer,  but  discontented  with  his  position  and  given  to 
quarrelling  with  his  comrades." 

"Have  a  hole  dug  and  bury  them  in  the  prison,"  D'Au- 
busson  said ;  ' '  they  have  been  false  to  their  vows,  and  false  to 
their  religion.  They  have  chosen  their  own  mode  of  death  ; 
let  them  be  buried  like  dogs,  as  they  are.  But  let  a  careful 
search  be  made  of  their  garments  and  of  this  room.  It  may 
be  that  they  have  some  documents  concealed  which  may  be  of 
use  to  us." 

The  grand  master  then  descended  to  the  hall. 

"  Members  of  the  Order,"  he  said  to  the  overseers,  "  your 
guilty  companions  have  met  death  by  their  own  hands,  as  the 
others  concerned  in  this  plot  have  met  theirs  by  the  swords  of 
the  knights.  It  were  well  that  this  matter  were  not  spoken  of 
outside  the  prison.  The  attempt  has  been  detected,  and  has 
failed ;  but  were  it  talked  of,  it  might  incite  others  to  repeat 
the  attempt,  and  possibly  with  better  success.  Now,"  he 
went  on,  turning  to  the  governor,  "our  work  is  done  here. 
Call  up  the  other  warders.  Let  them  take  the  men  now  pris- 


180  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

oners  in  the  rooms,  and  place  them  in  a  dungeon.  Let  fresh 
men  be  placed  on  guard,  and  let  all  the  knights  gather  in  the 
courtyard." 

When  this  was  done,  and  all  the  knights  again  assembled, 
D'Aubusson  said, — 

"Our  work  is  nearly  done,  brothers.  The  traitors  are  all 
dead,  and  the  revolt  is  at  an  end.  It  remains  but  to  capture 
the  author  of  this  attempt ;  but  I  believe  he  is  already  in  our 
hands.  I  have  given  an  accurate  description  of  him  to  De 
Veschi.  who  has  taken  four  knights  with  him,  and  they  prob- 
ably will  catch  him  down  at  the  port ;  if  not,  he  will  be  ar- 
rested the  first  thing  in  the  morning.  As  to  the  slaves,  they 
will  be  so  utterly  cowed  by  the  discovery,  that  there  will  be 
no  fear  of  their  repeating  the  attempt.  I  have  ordered  the 
officials  of  the  prison  to  say  naught  in  the  town  of  what  has 
taken  place.  There  can,  however,  be  no  concealment  among 
ourselves.  I  shall,  of  course,  lay  the  whole  matter  before  the 
council.  The  fact  that  a  strong  body  of  knights  has,  at  so 
late  an  hour,  started  on  some  unknown  mission  is,  of  course, 
already  known  in  the  auberges  of  Auvergne  and  England.  No 
concealment  of  the  facts  is  therefore  possible.  It  is  the  most 
serious  attempt  at  a  revolt  of  the  slaves  that  has  ever  taken  place, 
and  will  be  a  warning  to  us  that  more  vigilance  must  be  exer- 
cised. As  it  is,  we  have  only  been  saved  from  the  loss  of  our 
galleys  and  slaves  by  the  acuteness  of  one  of  the  youngest  of 
our  knights,  who,  in  the  first  place,  noted  a  suspicious  occur- 
rence which  would  have  been  passed  by  without  attracting  a 
moment's  thought  by  ninety-nine  out  of  a  hundred  men.  He 
laid  the  matter  before  his  bailiff,  Sir  John  Kendall,  who  ac- 
cepted his  offer  to  disguise  himself  as  a  slave,  to  enter  the 
prison  under  circumstances  that  would  excite  no  suspicions 
among  the  others,  and  to  live  and  work  among  them  in  order 
to  ascertain  whether  there  was  any  plot  on  hand.  This  task 
— a  painful  one,  as  you  may  imagine — he  carried  out,  and  for 
two  weeks  he  rowed  as  a  galley-slave.  His  lot  was  as  hard  as 


IN    COMMAND    OF   A    GALLEY  181 

that  of  the  others,  for,  as  he  had  reason  to  believe  that  some 
of  the  officials  were  concerned  in  the  plot,  it  was  necessary 
that  all  should  be  kept  in  ignorance  that  he  was  other  than 
he  seemed  to  be.  Thanks  to  his  perfect  knowledge  of  Turkish, 
he  was  able  to  carry  his  mission  through  with  complete  suc- 
cess, and  to  obtain  full  particulars  of  the  plot  we  have  to-night 
crushed.  The  knight  who  has  performed  this  inestimable  ser- 
vice is  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham,  of  the  English  langue.  The 
action  he  has  performed  will  be  noted  in  the  annals  of  the 
Order  as  an  example  of  intelligence  and  of  the  extreme  of  self- 
sacrifice,  as  well  as  of  courage ;  for  his  life  would  have  been  as- 
suredly forfeited  had  the  slaves  entertained  the  slightest  sus- 
picion of  his  real  character." 

There  was  a  murmur  of  acclamation  among  the  knights.  Not 
one  of  them  but  would  have  freely  risked  his  life  in  the  service 
of  the  Order,  but  there  were  few  who  would  not  have  shrunk 
from  the  idea  of  living  as  a  slave  among  the  slaves,  sharing 
their  tasks,  and  subject  to  the  orders  of  men  of  inferior  rank 
and  often  brutal  manners. 

The  knights  now  returned  to  their  auberges.  It  was  past 
midnight,  but  at  the  English  house  the  lamps  and  flambeaux 
were  lighted  in  the  great  hall.  The  servitors  were  called  up, 
wine  placed  on  the  table,  and  the  knights  discussed  the  inci- 
dents of  the  evening. 

When  the  meal  had  concluded,  Sir  John  Kendall  said, 
"  Brother  knights, — When  the  grand  master  bestowed  the 
honour  of  secular  knighthood  upon  this  young  comrade  of  ours, 
he  predicted  that  he  would  rise  to  high  distinction  in  the  Or- 
der. I  think  you  will  all  agree  with  me  that  the  prediction  is 
already  in  a  fair  way  of  being  fulfilled,  and  that  the  services  he 
has  rendered  to  the  Order  justify  us,  his  comrades  of  the  Eng- 
lish langue,  in  feeling  proud  of  him.  I  drink,  brothers,  to  his 
health." 

A  loud  shout  rose  from  the  assembled  knights,  for  upon  the 
return  of  the  party  who  had  been  away,  the  rest  of  those  at 


182  A  KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

the  auberge  had  hastily  robed  themselves  and  descended  to  the 
hall  to  gather  the  news.  When  the  shout  had  died  away,  and 
the  wine-cups  were  emptied,  Gervaise,  who  was  sitting  on  Sir 
John  Kendall's  right  hand,  would  gladly  have  retained  his  seat, 
but  the  bailiff  told  him  that  he  must  say  a  few  words,  and  after 
standing  in  embarrassed  silence  for  a  minute  he  said, — 

"  Sir  John  Kendall,  and  brother  knights, — I  can  only  say 
that  I  am  very  sensible  of  the  kindness  with  which  you  have 
been  pleased  to  regard  what  seems  to  me  after  all  to  have  been 
a  very  ordinary  affair.  I  saw  a  man,  whom  I  knew  to  be  a 
stranger  in  the  Island,  speaking  surreptitiously  to  a  slave,  and 
afterwards  saw  him  conversing  with  a  prison  officer.  That 
naturally  struck  me  as  curious,  and  I  followed  the  officer,  to 
see  to  which  prison  he  belonged.  Any  one  would  have  thought, 
as  I  did,  that  such  a  thing  was  strange,  if  not  suspicious,  and 
the  only  way  to  find  out  whether  there  was  anything  in  it  was 
to  mix  with  the  slaves ;  as  I  spoke  Turkish  well  enough  to  do 
so  I  asked  Sir  John  Kendall's  permission  to  disguise  myself. 
He  gave  me  every  assistance,  and  I  shared  their  lot  for  a  fort- 
night. There  was  no  very  great  hardship  in  that — certainly 
nothing  to.  merit  the  praise  that  Sir  John  Kendall  has  been  kind 
enough  to  bestow  on  me.  Nevertheless,  I  am  very  glad  to 
have  gained  your  good  opinion,  and  very  grateful  to  him  and 
to  you  for  drinking  to  my  health. ' ' 

Then  he  sat  down  abruptly. 

Sir  John  Kendall  now  rose,  and  the  knights,  following  his 
example,  betook  themselves  to  their  dormitories. 

The  next  morning  notices  were  sent  by  the  grand  master  to 
the  bailiffs  of  the  auberges,  and  the  knights  of  the  grand  cross 
who  happened  to  be  in  the  Island,  to  assemble  in  council. 
Messages  were  also  sent  to  Gervaise,  requesting  him  to  repair 
at  the  same  hour  to  the  palace,  as  the  council  would  probably 
require  his  attendance. 

"  Oh  dear  !  I  wish  this  was  all  over,"  he  said  to  Ralph,  as 
the  latter  assisted  him  to  buckle  on  his  armour. 


IN  COMMAND   OP  A  GALLEY  188 

"  I  don't  see  anything  to  sigh  about,"  Ralph  said.  "I 
think  that  you  are  the  most  fortunate  fellow  in  the  world.  I 
do  not  say  that  you  have  not  well  deserved  it,  because  it  is  the 
tremendous  way  you  worked  at  Turkish  and  gave  up  every- 
thing else  that  has  enabled  you  to  do  this.  Still,  there  was 
luck  in  your  noticing  that  villain  talking  to  the  galley-slaves, 
and  then  to  one  of  the  officers  of  the  prison.  Of  course,  as  the 
grand  master  said  last  night,  it  isn't  one  in  a  thousand  who 
would  have  thought  anything  more  about  it,  and  I  am  sure  I 
shouldn't ;  so  that,  and  all  the  rest,  is  entirely  your  own  doing. 
Still,  it  was  a  piece  of  luck  that  you  noticed  him  talking  with  a 
slave.  Don't  think  I  envy  you,  Gervaise  ;  I  don't  a  bit,  and  I 
feel  as  much  as  any  one  that  you  have  well  deserved  the  honour 
you  have  obtained.  Still,  you  know,  it  is  a  sort  of  consolation 
to  me  that  luck  had  a  little — just  a  little — to  do  with  it." 

"In  my  opinion  luck  had  everything  to  do  with  it,"  Ger- 
vaise said  heartily,  "  and  I  feel  downright  ashamed  at  there 
being  such  a  fuss  made  over  it.  It  was  bad  enough  before, 
merely  because  I  had  hit  on  a  plan  for  our  escape  from  those 
pirates,  but  this  is  worse,  and  I  feel  horribly  nervous  at  the 
thought  of  having  to  appear  before  the  grand  master  and  the 
council." 

"  Well,  that  brown  dye  will  hide  your  blushes,  Gervaise.  I 
can  only  say  I  wish  that  I  was  in  your  place.  By-the-bye, 
have  you  heard  that  they  caught  that  rascal  Greek  last  night  ? ' ' 

"  No,  I  have  not  heard  anything  about  it." 

"  Yes.  The  knights  hid  themselves  behind  a  pile  of  goods 
on  the  wharf.  There  was  no  one  about,  so  far  as  they  could 
see,  but  soon  after  twelve  they  saw  a  figure  come  up  on  to  the 
deck  of  a  fishing-boat  moored  by  the  quay.  It  was  the  Greek  ; 
he  stood  there  for  a  minute  or  two  listening,  and  then  went 
down  again ;  he  did  this  five  or  six  times,  and  at  one  o'clock 
they  saw  him  throw  up  his  arms,  as  if  in  despair  ;  he  stepped 
ashore,  and  was  about  to  make  his  way  up  into  the  town  when 
they  rushed  out  and  seized  him.  There  is  no  doubt  as  to 


184  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

what  his  fate  will  be.  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  I  hear  my  friend 
Vrados  has  been  arrested  ;  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  about 
his  loyalty,  and  he  will  assuredly  be  able  to  explain  to  the 
satisfaction  of  the  council  how  this  man  became  a  resident  at 
his  house." 

"  I  am  sorry  I  met  him  there,  Ralph.  It  is  a  very  unpleas- 
ant thing  to  have  gone  to  a  house,  to  have  been  received 
kindly,  and  then  to  be  the  means  of  bringing  trouble  upon  it." 

"  Yes.  I  feel  that  a  little  myself,  because  I  took  you  there  ; 
and  yet  I  cannot  regret  it,  for  if  you  had  not  seen  him  and 
taken  an  objection  to  him,  you  might  not  have  noticed  him 
particularly  when  he  spoke  to  one  of  the  galley-slaves.  It  is 
certainly  curious  that  you  should  have  doubted  the  man,  for  I 
have  met  him  there  several  times,  and  even  after  your  visit 
with  me  I  could  see  nothing  in  him  to  justify  your  dislike." 

Gervaise  went  up  to  the  palace,  and  while  waiting  in  the 
great  hall  until  summoned  before  the  council  he  was  warmly 
accosted  by  several  knights, — some  of  whom  were  quite 
strangers  to  him, — who  all  joined  in  congratulating  him  on  the 
immense  service  he  had  done  to  the  Order.  It  was  upwards  of 
an  hour  before  he  was  called  in. 

"The  council  have  received,  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham,"  the 
grand  master  said,  "  full  details  from  Sir  John  Kendall  of  the 
manner  in  which  you  first  discovered,  and  have  since  followed 
up  the  daring  plot  by  which  the  slaves  at  St.  Pelagius  were  to 
have  risen,  slainthe  guards  who  were  faithful,  spiked  the  can- 
non in  the  three  water  forts,  burnt  the  merchant  shipping, 
carried  off  six  galleys  and  burnt  the  rest,  and  in  their  name  I 
thank  you  for  having  saved  the  Order  from  a  great  calamity. 
The  members  of  the  council  agree  with  me  that  you  have 
shown  an  amount  of  discernment  of  the  highest  kind,  and  that 
you  are  worthy  of  exceptional  favour  and  reward  for  your  con- 
duct. I  therefore  in  my  own  name  appoint  you  to  the  com- 
mandery  of  our  manor  of  Maltby  in  Lincolnshire,  which, 
having  fallen  vacant,  is  in  my  gift ;  and  I  release  it  from  the 


IN    COMMAND    OF   A   GALLEY         *  185 

usual  payment  of  the  first  year's  revenue.  Knowing  that  you 
desire  to  establish  yourself  here,  the  council  have,  at  my  re- 
quest, decided  to  make  an  exception  to  the  general  rule  that  a 
knight,  on  promotion  to  a  commandery,  must  return  and  take 
charge  of  it  in  two  years  from  the  time  the  grant  is  made  to 
him.  The  commandery  will  therefore  be  administered  by  the 
senior  of  the  knights  attached  to  it. 

"  The  council,  on  their  part,  have  requested  the  bailiff  of 
Auvergne,  as  grand  master  of  the  Fleet,  to  appoint  you  to  the 
command  of  the  galley  now  building,  and  approaching  comple- 
tion. This  he  has  consented  to  do,  feeling,  as  we  all  feel,  that 
although  such  an  appointment  is  unprecedented  for  a  young 
knight,  yet  in  the  present  case  such  an  exception  may  well  be 
made.  I  may  add  that  the  Admiral  has — in  order  that  co 
knight  greatly  your  senior  should  be  placed  under  your  com- 
mand— determined  that  he  will  appoint  to  it  only  young 
knights,  who  will,  we  are  assured,  gladly  serve  under  one  who 
has  so  distinguished  himself,  feeling  certain  that,  under  his 
command,  they  will  have  ample  opportunities  against  the  in- 
fidels to  prove  themselves  worthy  of  the  Order.  I  may  add, 
also,  that  the  bailiffs  of  all  the  langues  promise  that  they  will 
select  from  among  the  young  knights  such  as  may  seem  best 
fitted  for  such  service,  by  their  skill  in  warlike  exercises,  by 
their  ready  obedience  to  orders,  and  good  conduct.  And  I 
foresee  that  the  spirit  of  emulation,  and  the  desire  to  show 
that,  though  still  but  professed  knights,  they  are  capable  of  per- 
forming as  valiant  deeds  as  their  elders,  will  make  the  galley 
under  your  command  one  of  the  most  successful  in  the  Order. 

"  As  you  are  aware,  it  is  a  stringent  rule,  which  even  in  so 
exceptional  a  case  we  should  not  be  justified  in  breaking,  that 
a  knight  must  reside  in  the.  Island  for  five  years  previous  to 
being  promoted  to  a  commandery.  It  is  now  two  months 
more  than  that  time  since  you  were  received  as  page  to  the  late 
grand  master,  and  in  promoting  you  to  a  commandery  I  have 
not,  therefore,  broken  the  rule.  You  may  retire,  Sir  Gervaise. " 


186  -      A   KNIGHT   OP  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

Gervaise,  overwhelmed  by  the  unlooked-for  honours  thus 
bestowed  upon  him,  bowed  deeply  to  the  grand  master  and  the 
members  of  the  council,  and  then  retired  from  the  chamber. 
He  passed  out  of  the  palace  by  a  side  door,  so  as  to  avoid  being 
accosted  by  the  knights  in  the  great  hall,  and  took  his  way 
out  on  to  the  ramparts,  where  he  walked  up  and  down  for  a 
considerable  time  before  returning  to  the  auberge.  He  felt  no 
hilarity  at  his  promotion.  He  had  never  entertained  any  am- 
bition for  rising  to  high  office  in  the  Order,  but  had  hoped 
only  to  perform  his  duty  as  a  true  knight,  to  fight  against  the 
infidels,  and  some  day,  if  need  be,  to  die  for  the  Order.  The 
commandery  was,  he  knew,  a  rich  one,  and  as  its  chief  he  would 
draw  a  considerable  revenue  from  the  estate.  This  afforded 
him  no  pleasure  whatever,  except  inasmuch  as  it  would  enable 
him,  in  his  new  command  of  the  galley,  to  keep  a  handsome 
table,  and  to  entertain  well  the  knights  who  served  under  him. 

It  seemed  to  him,  however,  that  the  reward  and  honours  were 
so  far  beyond  his  deserts  that  he  felt  almost  humiliated  by  their 
bestowal.  The  responsibility,  too,  was  great.  Would  these 
young  knights,  the  youngest  of  whom  could  be  but  a  year  his 
junior,  serve  willingly  under  his  orders  ?  And,  above  all,  would 
they  be  able  to  emulate  the  deeds  of  experienced  warriors,  and 
would  the  galley  worthily  maintain  the  fame  of  the  Order  ? 

At  the  end  of  two  hours  he  was  joined  by  Ralph  Harcourt. 

"  I  have  been  looking  for  you  everywhere,  Gervaise.  You 
seemed  to  have  disappeared  mysteriously.  None  had  marked 
you  leave  the  council  chamber,  or  knew  where  you  had  gone  ; 
and  after  searching  everywhere  I  remembered  your  fondness  for 
walks  upon  the  walls,  so  I  climbed  to  the  top  of  St.  John's 
tower  and  thence  espied  you.  Well,  I  congratulate  you  most 
heartily  on  the  honours  that  have  fallen  to  your  share,  espe- 
cially that  of  the  command  of  a  new  galley." 

"  It  is  too  much  altogether,  Ralph.  I  feel  ashamed  at  being 
thus  thrust  into  a  post  that  ought  to  be  given  to  a  knight  of 
age  and  experience.  How  can  I  expect  a  number  of  young 


IN   COMMAND   OF   A   GALLEY  187 

knights,  of  whom  well-nigh  all  must  be  my  seniors  in  age,  to 
obey  me  as  they  would  an  older  man  ?  ' ' 

"  What  has  age  to  do  with  it  ?  "  Ralph  said.  "  You  have 
shown  that  you  have  a  head  to  think,  and,  as  you  before 
proved,  you  have  an  arm  to  strike.  Why,  every  young  knight 
in  the  Order  must  feel  proud  that  one  of  their  own  age  has 
gained  such  honour.  It  raises  them  all  in  their  own  esteem, 
and  you  will  see  that  you  will  get  the  pick  among  all  the  pro- 
fessed knights,  and  of  a  good  many  who  have  finished  their 
profession,  and  are  serving  here  in  the  hope  of  some  day  get- 
ting promotion  to  a  commandery.  Not  such  an  one  as  you 
have  got ;  that,  in  the  ordinary  course  of  things,  does  not  fall 
to  a  knight  until  he  is  well  on  in  years,  and  has  served  in 
many  commanderies  of  smaller  value.  I  can  tell  you,  directly 
Sir  John  Kendall  came  back  and  told  us  that  you  had  been  ap- 
pointed commander  of  the  new  galley,  and  that  it  was  to  be 
manned  wholly  by  young  knights,  there  was  not  one  of  those 
serving  their  profession  in  the  auberge  who  did  not  beg  Sir 
John  to  put  down  his  name  for  it ;  and  ten  or  twelve  others, 
myself  among  them,  who  have  obtained  full  knighthood  also." 

"You  don't  mean  to  say  that  you  have  put  down  your 
name  to  serve  under  me,  Ralph  ?  It  would  be  monstrous." 

"  I  see  nothing  monstrous  in  it,  Gervaise.  As  I  said  just 
now,  years  have  nothing  to  do  with  it,  and,  putting  aside  our 
friendship,  I  would  rather  serve  under  you  than  under  many 
knights  old  enough  to  be  your  father.  I  don't  know  whether 
I  shall  have  the  luck  to  be  one  of  the  chosen,  as  Sir  John  said 
that  there  were  to  be  only  seven  from  each  langue,  which  will 
make  forty-nine — with  yourself  fifty.  If  I  am  chosen — and, 
knowing  our  friendship,  I  hope  that  the  bailiff  will  let  me  go 
with  you — it  is  likely  enough  I  may  be  named  your  lieutenant, 
as  I  shall  be  the  only  one  beside  yourself  who  is  a  secular 
knight,  and  am,  therefore,  superior  in  rank  to  the  rest." 

"That  would  be  pleasant  indeed,  Ralph,  though  I  would 
rather  that  you  had  been  made  commander  and  I  lieutenant ; 


188  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

but  at  any  rate,  with  you  to  support  me,  I  shall  feel  less  op- 
pressed by  the  thought  of  my  responsibility." 

As  Ralph  had  declared  would  be  the  case,  the  young  knights 
in  the  other  auberges  were  as  anxious  as  those  of  England  to 
be  enrolled  among  the  crew  of  the  new  galley,  and  the  bailiffs 
had  some  trouble  in  choosing  among  the  aspirants.  Very  few 
were  selected  outside  the  rank  of  professed  knights,  and  as 
great  pains  were  taken  to  comply  with  the  grand  master's 
wishes  that  only  young  knights  of  good  conduct  and  disposi- 
tion, and  distinguished  by  their  proficiency  in  warlike  exer- 
cises, should  be  chosen,  the  crew  was  in  every  way  a  picked 
one.  Most  of  them  had  made  one  or  two  of  the  three  months' 
voyages  in  the  galleys,  though  comparatively  few  had  had  the 
good  fortune  to  be  absolutely  engaged  with  the  Moslem  pirates. 

To  the  great  satisfaction  of  himself  and  Gervaise,  Ralph 
Harcourt  was  nominated  lieutenant  of  the  galley.  The  fact 
that  so  many  had  volunteered  impressed  all  those  who  were 
chosen  with  the  sense  that  it  was  at  once  an  honour  and  a  piece 
of  good  fortune  to  be  selected,  and  all  were  determined  that 
the  boy-galley,  as  the  elder  knights  laughingly  termed  it, 
should  do  honour  to  the  Order. 

It  was  a  fortnight  before  she  was  launched.  Gervaise  had 
heard,  with  great  satisfaction,  that  it  had  been  decided  by  the 
council  that  no  punishment  should  be  inflicted  upon  the  slaves 
for  their  share  in  the  intended  rising  at  St.  Pelagius.  All  were 
guilty,  and  there  was  no  means  of  saying  who  had  taken  prom- 
inent parts  in  the  plot.  The  council  felt  that  it  was  but  nat- 
ural that  they  should  grasp  at  the  prospect  of  freedom,  for  they 
themselves  would  have  done  the  same  had  they  been  captives 
of  the  infidels.  Even  the  warders  and  guards  were  allowed  to 
go  unpunished,  although  their  offence  was  a  much  more  serious 
one.  Those  who  could  have  named  the  men  who  had  accepted 
bribes  were  dead,  and  the  lesson  had  been  so  severe  a  one  that 
there  was  no  probability  of  any  again  turning  traitors.  The 
author  of  the  rising  had  been  publicly  executed.  Seeing  the 


THE    BOY-GALLEY  189 

hopelessness  of  denial,  he  had  boldly  avowed  his  share  in  the 
matter,  and  had  acknowledged  that  he  was  acting  as  agent  for 
the  sultan,  and  had  been  supplied  with  ample  funds  before 
leaving  Constantinople. 

He  declared  that  he  was  absolutely  unable  to  give  any 
names  whatever  of  those  concerned  in  the  plot,  save  those  of 
the  two  overseers,  as  these  had  undertaken  the  work  of  suborn- 
ing the  warders  and  guards,  though  he  admitted  that  he  had  on 
several  occasions  spoken  to  slaves  as  the  gangs  were  on  their 
way  back  to  the  prison,  and  had  told  them  to  be  prepared  to  take 
part  in  a  plan  that  was  on  foot  for  their  rescue  from  slavery. 
The  torture  had  not  been,  as  was  then  the  usual  custom,  ap- 
plied to  extort  information  ;  partly  because  his  story  was  prob- 
able, still  more  because  the  grand  master  and  council  did  not 
wish  that  more  publicity  should  be  given  to  the  affair,  and 
were  glad  that  it  should  be  allowed  to  drop  without  any  fur- 
ther trial  of  the  delinquents.  In  the  city  generally  it  was 
only  known  that  a  plot  had  been  discovered  for  the  liberation 
and  escape  of  some  of  the  slaves ;  and,  outside  the  members  of 
the  Order,  none  were  aware  of  its  extent  and  dangerous  char- 
acter. To  the  satisfaction  of  Gervaise  and  Ralph,  Vrados  was 
able  to  produce  letters  and  documents  that  satisfied  the  coun- 
cil that  he  had  been  deceived  as  to  the  character  of  the  Greek, 
and  was  wholly  innocent  in  the  matter. 


CHAPTER   XII 

THE   BOY-GALLEY 


AMONG  those  most  pleased  at  the  appointment  of  Gervaise 
to  the  command  of  the  galley  was  Sir  John  Boswell. 
Ever  since  the  adventure  with  the  pirates,  the  knight  had  ex- 
hibited an  almost  fatherly  interest  in  him ;  had  encouraged  him 


190  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

in  his  studies,  ridden  with  him  on  such  occasions  as  he  had 
permitted  himself  a  short  holiday,  and  had,  whenever  they 
were  together,  related  to  him  stories  of  war,  sieges,  battles,  and 
escapes,  from  which  he  thought  the  young  knight  might  gain 
lessons  for  his  future  guidance. 

"  I  doubt,  Gervaise,"  he  said  one  day,  as  they  were  riding 
quietly  along  the  road,  "  whether  our  plan  of  life  is  altogether 
the  best.  We  were  founded,  you  know,  simply  as  a  body  of 
monks,  bound  to  devote  ourselves  solely  to  the  care  of  the  sick, 
and  to  give  hospitality  to  pilgrims  in  Palestine.  Now  this 
was  monkish  work,  and  men  who  devoted  themselves  solely  to 
such  a  life  of  charity  as  that  in  our  Hospital  at  Jerusalem, 
might  well  renounce  all  human  pleasures  ;  but  when  the  great 
change  was  made  by  Master  Raymond  du  Puy,  and  from  a 
nursing  body  we  became  a  brotherhood-in-arms,  it  seems  to 
me  that  the  vows  of  celibacy  were  no  longer  needful  or  desir- 
able. The  crusaders  were,  many  of  them,  married  men,  but 
they  fought  no  worse  for  that.  It  would  have  been  far  better, 
methinks,  had  we  been  converted  into  an  Order  pledged  to 
resist  the  infidel,  but  without  the  vows  of  poverty  and  of  celi- 
bacy, which  have  never  been  seriously  regarded. 

"  The  garrison  here  might  be  composed,  as  indeed  it  is  now, 
principally  of  young  knights,  of  those  who  have  not  cared  to 
marry,  and  of  the  officers  of  the  Order  whose  wives  and  fam- 
ilies might  dwell  here  with  them.  This  would  have  many  ad- 
vantages. Among  others,  the  presence  of  so  many  ladies  of 
rank  would  have  the  excellent  effect  of  discountenancing  and 
repressing  extravagances  and  dissolute  habits,  which  are  but  too 
common,  and  are  a  shame  to  the  Order.  Knights  possessing 
commanderies  throughout  Europe  would  be  no  worse  stewards 
for  being  married  men,  and  scandals,  such  as  contributed 
largely  to  the  downfall  of  the  Templars,  would  be  avoided. 

"  The  sole  vow  necessary,  so  far  as  I  can  see,  would  be  that 
knights  should  remain  unmarried  and  disposable  at  all  times 
for  service  until  ten  years  after  making  their  profession,  and 


THE   BOY-GALLEY  191 

that  afterwards  they  should  ever  be  ready  to  obey  the  sum- 
mons to  arms,  on  occasions  when  the  safety  of  Rhodes,  or  the 
invasion  of  any  Christian  country  by  the  Moslems,  rendered 
their  services  needful,  when  they  would  come  out  just  as  the 
knights  of  Richard  the  Lion-heart  went  out  as  crusaders.  I  have 
spent  half  my  life  since  I  joined  the  Order  in  commanderies  at 
home,  and  a  dull  life  it  was,  and  I  was  glad  enough  to  resign 
my  last  command  and  come  out  here.  Had  I  been  able  to 
marry,  I  might  now  have  had  a  son  of  your  age,  whose  career 
I  could  watch  and  feel  a  pride  in.  My  life  would  have  been 
far  happier  in  England,  and  in  all  respects  I  should  be  a  better 
man  than  I  am  now.  Methinks  it  would  strengthen  rather 
than  weaken  the  Order.  As  a  fighting  body  we  should  be  in 
no  way  inferior  to  what  we  are  now,  and  we  should  be  more 
liked  and  more  respected  throughout  Europe,  for  naturally  the 
sight  of  so  many  men  leading  a  luxurious  life  in  commanderies 
causes  a  feeling  against  them." 

"But  I  suppose,  Sir  John,  that  there  is  no  great  difficulty 
in  obtaining  a  dispensation  from  our  vows?" 

"  In  this,  as  in  all  other  matters,  everything  depends  upon 
interest  or  money.  Of  course,  dispensations  are  not  common ; 
but  doubtless  any  knight  when  he  had  served  his  term  of  ac- 
tive service  could,  especially  if  his  request  were  backed  by  the 
grand  master,  obtain  from  the  Pope  a  dispensation  of  his  vow's. 
If  he  had  a  commandery  it  would  make  a  vacancy,  and  give 
the  grand  prior,  or  the  grand  master,  or  the  council,  in  whoso- 
ever's  gift  it  might  be,  an  opportunity  of  rewarding  services  or 
of  gratifying  some  powerful  family." 

"  I  agree  with  you  that  it  would  have  been  much  better,  Sir 
John.  I  can  understand  that  monks,  ever  living  a  quiet  life 
apart  from  the  world,  should  be  content  so  to  continue ;  but 
among  a  body  of  warlike  knights  there  must  be  many  who,  in 
time,  must  come  to  regret  the  vows  they  took  when  boys.  The 
cadet  of  a  noble  family  might,  by  the  death  of  elder  brothers, 
come  to  be  the  head  of  a  great  family,  the  ruler  over  wide  do- 


192  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

mains.  Surely  it  would  be  desirable  that  such  a  man  should 
be  able  to  marry  and  have  heirs. ' ' 

' '  Doubtless  it  could  be  managed  in  such  cases,  Gervaise, 
but  it  is  a  pity  that  it  should  have  to  be  managed.  I  can  see 
no  reason  in  the  world  why  a  knight,  after  doing  ten  years  of 
service  here,  should  not  be  free  to  marry,  providing  he  takes 
a  vow  to  render  full  service  to  the  Order  whenever  called  upon 
to  do  so.  Already  the  vow  of  poverty  is  everywhere  broken. 
Already,  in  defiance  of  their  oaths,  too  many  knights  lead  idle 
and  dissolute  lives.  Already,  knights,  when  in  their  own 
countries,  disregard  the  rule  that  they  shall  draw  sword  in  no 
cause  save  that  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  and,  like  other  knights 
and  nobles,  take  part  in  civil  strife  or  foreign  wars.  All  this 
is  a  scandal,  and  it  were  better  by  far  to  do  away  with  all 
oaths,  save  that  of  obedience  and  willingness  to  war  with  the 
infidel,  than  to  make  vows  that  all  men  know  are  constantly 
and  shamelessly  broken. 

"  I  am  fond  of  you,  Gervaise.  I  am  proud  of  you,  as  one 
who  has  brought  honour  to  our  langue,  and  who,  in  time,  will 
bring  more  honour.  I  am  glad  that,  so  far  as  there  can  be 
between  a  young  knight  and  one  of  middle  age,  there  is  a 
friendship  between  us.  But  see  what  greater  pleasure  it  would 
give  to  my  life  were  you  my  son,  for  whom  I  could  lay  by  such 
funds  as  I  could  well  spare,  instead  of  spending  all  my  appoint- 
ments on  myself,  and  having  neither  kith  nor  kin  to  give  a  sigh 
of  regret  when  the  news  comes  that  I  have  fallen  in  some  en- 
gagement with  the  infidels.  I  often  think  of  all  these  things, 
and  sometimes  talk  them  over  with  comrades,  and  there  are 
few  who  do  not  hold,  with  me,  that  it  would  be  far  better  that 
we  should  become  a  purely  military  Order,  like  some  of  the 
military  Orders  in  the  courts  of  the  European  sovereigns,  than 
remain  as  we  are,  half  monk,  half  soldier — a  mixture  that,  so 
far  as  I  can  see,  accords  but  badly  with  either  morality  or  pub- 
lic repute. 

"  However,  I  see  no  chance  of  such  a  change  coming,  and 


THE    BOY-GALLEY  193 

we  must  be  content  to  observe  our  vows  as  well  as  may  be,  so 
long  as  we  are  willing  to  remain  monks  and  try  to  obtain  dis- 
pensation from  our  vows  should  we  desire  to  alter  our  mode  of 
life.  We  ought  either  to  have  remained  monks  pure  and  simple, 
spending  our  lives  in  deeds  of  charity,  a  life  which  suits  many 
men,  and  against  which  I  should  be  the  last  to  say  anything,  or 
else  soldiers  pure  and  simple,  as  were  the  crusaders,  who  wrested 
the  Holy  Sepulchre  from  the  hands  of  the  infidels.  At  present, 
Gervaise,  your  vocation  lies  wholly  in  the  way  of  fighting,  but 
it  may  be  that  the  time  will  come  when  you  may  have  other  aims 
and  ambitions,  and  when  the  vows  of  the  Order  will  gall  you." 

"  I  hope  not,  Sir  John,"  Gervaise  said  earnestly. 

"  You  are  young  yet,"  the  knight  replied,  with  an  indulgent 
smile."  "Some  day  you  may  think  differently.  Now,"  he 
went  on,  changing  the  subject  abruptly,  "  when  will  your 
galley  be  ready  ?  ' ' 

"  This  is  my  last  ride,  Sir  John.  The  shipwrights  will  have 
finished  to-morrow,  and  the  next  day  we  shall  take  possession 
of  her,  and  begin  to  practise,  so  that  each  man  shall  know  his 
duties,  and  the  galley-slaves  learn  to  row  well,  before  we  have 
orders  to  sail.  I  wish  you  were  going  with  us,  Sir  John." 

"  I  should  like  it,  lad,  in  many  respects.  It  does  one  good 
to  see  the  enthusiasm  of  young  men,  and  doubtless  you  will  be 
a  merry  party.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  unless  I  mistake,  you 
will  be  undertaking  wild  adventures,  and  my  time  for  these  is 
well-nigh  passed.  When  the  Turk  comes  here,  if  he  ever 
comes — and  of  that  I  have  little  doubt — I  shall  be  ready  to  take 
my  full  share  of  the  fighting  ;  but  I  shall  seek  adventures  no 
longer,  and  shall  go  no  more  to  sea.  Next  only  to  the  bailiff, 
I  am  the  senior  of  our  auberge,  and — but  this  is  between  our- 
selves, lad — am  like  to  succeed  to  the  grand  priory  of  England 
when  it  becomes  vacant,  and  if  not  I  shall,  as  the  grand  master 
has  told  me,  have  the  offer  of  the  next  high  office  vacant  in 
the  palace." 

Two  days  later  Gervaise  and  his  company  of  young  knights 


194:  A    KNIGHT    OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

went  down  to  the  port  to  take  part  in  the  launch  of  the  new 
galley.  This  was  the  occasion  of  a  solemn  ceremony,  the 
grand  master  and  a  large  number  of  knights  being  present.  A 
religious  service  first  took  place  on  her  poop,  and  she  was 
named  by  the  grand  master  the  "Santa  Barbara."  When 
the  ceremony  was  over,  Gervaise  was  solemnly  invested  with 
the  command  of  the  galley  by  the  grand  marshal  of  the  navy  ; 
then  the  shores  were  struck  away,  and  the  galley  glided  into 
the  water,  amid  the  firing  of  guns,  the  blowing  of  trumpets, 
and  the  cheers  of  the  spectators  who  had  gathered  at  the  port 
to  witness  the  ceremony. 

The  next  morning  a  gang  of  galley-slaves  were  marched  down. 
A  third  of  these  had  been  drawn  from  the  crews  of  other  gal- 
leys, their  places  being  supplied  by  new  hands.  The  remain- 
der were  taken  from  the  men  employed  on  the  fortifications. 
Three  weeks  were  occupied  in  teaching  the  rowers  their  work, 
and  getting  them  well  together.  They  were  a  fine  crew,  for  the 
governor  of  St.  Pelagius,  grateful  to  Gervaise  for  the  discovery 
of  the  plot,  had  ordered  the  overseers  to  pick  out  from  the  vari- 
ous gangs  men  specially  suited  by  age  and  strength  for  the  work. 

The  dye  by  this  time  had  entirely  worn  off  his  face,  and  al- 
though his  hair  was  still  several  shades  darker  than  of  old,  it 
differed  even  more  widely  from  the  ebon  hue  that  it  had  been 
when  he  was  in  prison.  Thus,  although  he  recognised  three 
or  four  men  upon  the  benches  who  had  been  fellow-occupants 
of  his  cell,  he  had  no  fear  whatever  of  their  detecting  in  the 
commander  of  the  galley  their  late  companion  in  misfortune. 

Only  a  portion  of  the  knights  had  been  out  each  day  while 
the  crew  were  learning  to  row,  as  there  was  but  little  for  them 
to  learn.  The  galley  carried  no  sails,  and  the  knights  were 
soldiers  rather  than  sailors,  and  fought  on  the  deck  of  their 
ship,  as  if  defending  a  breach,  or  storming  one  held  by  the 
enemy.  Moreover,  as  all  of  them  had  already  made  one  or 
more  voyages,  they  were  accustomed  to  such  duties  as  they 
would  have  to  discharge  on  board. 


THE    BOY-GALLEY  195 

All  were  glad  when  an  order  was  published  for  the  galley 
to  sail.  On  the  eve  of  departure  Gervaise  was  sent  for  by  the 
grand  master.  The  general  of  the  galleys  was  with  him  when 
Gervaise  entered  the  room.  The  bailiff  of  Auvergne  always 
held  the  position  of  grand  marshal,  and  the  bailiff  of  Italy  that 
of  second  in  command,  with  the  title  of  grand  admiral.  These 
officials,  however,  as  heads  of  their  respective  langues,  had 
many  other  duties  to  perform,  and  it  was  only  on  great  occa- 
sions that  they  took  any  practical  share  in  the  work  of  which 
they  were  nominally  heads.  The  real  control  in  all  naval  ques- 
tions rested  with  the  general  of  the  galleys,  who  was  elected  by 
the  council,  but  on  the  nomination  of  the  grand  master. 

His  power  when  at  sea  with  the  fleet  was  absolute.  He 
could  suspend  any  officer  from  duty,  and  had  unquestioned 
power  of  life  and  death  over  the  crews.  He  had  been  fre- 
quently on  board  the  galley  since  she  had  been  launched,  and 
had  been  pleased  with  the  attention  paid  by  Gervaise  to  his 
duties,  and  with  the  ready  manner  in  which  the  young  knights 
carried  out  his  orders. 

"  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham,"  he  said,  "  it  is  usual,  as  you  know, 
to  appoint  each  galley  to  a  certain  cruising  ground,  to  which 
it  is  confined  during  its  three  months'  absence.  At  present 
there  is  a  galley  on  each  of  these  stations,  and  as  the  last  re- 
lief took  place  but  a  month  since,  it  is  better  that  they  should 
remain  at  the  stations  allotted  to  them.  I  have  therefore,  after 
consultation  with  his  Highness  the  grand  master,  decided  to 
give  you  a  free  hand.  You  are  as  likely  to  meet  with  pirates 
in  one  quarter  as  in  another,  and  you  will  pick  up  from  ves- 
sels you  may  overhaul  news  of  their  doings,  which  will  enable 
you  to  direct  your  course  to  the  point  where  you  will  be  most 
useful." 

"  In  the  first  place,  however,  you  will  proceed  to  the  coast 
of  Tunis.  Visconti's  galley  is  already  there,  but  the  coast 
swarms  with  corsairs,  and  we  have  had  many  complaints  as  to 
their  depredations.  The  Court  of  Spain  has  twice  represented 


196  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

to  us  lately  that  the  pirates  have  grown  so  bold  that  vessels 
have  been  carried  off,  even  when  coasting  from  one  Spanish 
port  to  another.  Visconti  is  specially  watching  the  coast  near 
Tunis,  and  you  will  therefore  perhaps  do  better  to  proceed  far- 
ther west,  for  every  village  from  Tunis  to  Tangier  is  little  bet- 
ter than  a  nest  of  pirates.  I  should  imagine  that  you  will  find 
ample  employment  there  during  your  three  months'  cruise. 
When  I  say  that  you  are  free  to  choose  your  own  cruising 
ground,  I  do  not  mean  that  you  should  go  up  the  Levant,  or 
to  the  east  of  the  Mediterranean,  but  that  you  are  not  bound  to 
keep  close  along  the  African  coast,  but  may,  should  you  ob- 
tain any  information  to  warrant  your  doing  so,  seek  the  pirates 
along  the  shores  of  Spain,  Sardinia,  Corsica,  or  Sicily. 

"  I  need  not  warn  you  to  act  with  prudence  as  well  as  cour- 
age, for  you  have  proved  that  you  possess  both  qualities.  Do 
not  allow  yourself  to  be  carried  away  by  the  impetuosity  of 
your  knights ;  it  is  more  often  the  duty  of  a  commander  to 
restrain  than  to  encourage  his  crew,  and  with  such  young 
blood  as  you  have  under  your  command  the  necessity  will  be 
greater  than  usual.  Be  kind  to  your  slaves,  but  be  ever 
watchful ;  yet  this  I  need  not  tell  you.  Maintain  a  strict  but 
not  over -severe  discipline.  You  are  all  knights  and  comrades 
of  the  Order,  and  equals  when  on  shore,  but  on  board  you  are 
the  captain  and  they  are  your  soldiers.  I  have  this  afternoon 
had  a  meeting  of  your  knights,  and  have  urged  upon  them 
very  strongly  that,  having  volunteered  to  serve  under  you,  they 
must  obey  your  orders  as  promptly  and  willingly  as  if  you  were 
the  senior  knight  of  the  Order,  and  that  it  behoves  them 
specially  upon  the  present  occasion,  when  the  crew  is  com- 
posed entirely  of  young  knights,  to  show  themselves  worthy  of 
the  honour  that  has  been  done  to  them  by  entrusting  a  galley 
of  the  Order  to  their  charge.  I  told  them  I  should  regard  your 
report  of  their  individual  conduct  with  the  same  attention  and 
respect  with  which  I  should  that  of  any  other  commander,  and 
that  they  might  greatly  make  or  mar  their  future  prospects  in 


THE    BOY-GALLEY  197 

the  Order  by  their  conduct  during  the  cruise.  I  am  convinced, 
from  what  I  know  of  you,  that  you  will  exercise  no  undue  harsh- 
ness, but  will  act  with  tact  and  discretion,  as  well  as  firmness." 

"  I  will  try  to  do  so,  your  Excellency.  I  feel  that  it  is  a 
heavy  responsibility  and  will  spare  no  pains  to  justify  the  un- 
merited honour  that  has  been  bestowed  upon  me." 

' '  You  have  seen  that  the  taking  in  of  stores  is  complete,  and 
that  nothing  is  wanting  for  the  voyage  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir.  I  stood  by  while  the  overseer  of  stores  checked 
off  every  sack  and  barrel  as  it  came  on  board.  The  water  is  to 
be  brought  off  this  evening,  and  as  I  was  unable  to  be  present, 
Sir  Ralph  Harcourt  is  there  to  count  the  barrels  and  see  that 
all  are  full." 

"  Good-bye,  Sir  Gervaise,"  the  grand  master  said,  as  the 
interview  terminated.  "Hitherto  you  have  given  me,  from 
the  time  you  reached  the  Island,  naught  but  reason  for  satis- 
faction at  my  nomination  of  you  as  page,  and  I  have  no  fear 
that  you  will  fail  this  time.  Remember  that  valour,  however 
great,  cannot  prevail  against  overpowering  odds.  You  had  a 
lesson  of  that  when  you  served  under  Ricord,  though  finally 
the  affair  turned  out  well.  I  do  not  say,  don't  attempt  des- 
perate undertakings,  but  don't  attempt  impossible  ones.  Be 
careful  of  the  lives  of  your  knights.  Remember  that  ere  long 
every  sword  may  be  of  the  utmost  consequence  in  the  defence 
of  Rhodes,  and  that  even  the  capture  of  pirates  may  be  too 
dearly  purchased ;  but  that,  at  the  same  time,  the  honour  of 
the  flag  of  the  Order  must  be  upheld  at  all  hazards.  Ah  !  " 
he  broke  off,  seeing  a  slight  smile  on  the  young  knight's  face, 
"you  think  my  orders  contradictory?  It  may  be  so;  but 
you  know  what  I  mean,  and  I  fear  not  that  you  will  blunder 
in  carrying  them  out.  Be  prudent,  and  yet  not  over-prudent. 
I  mean,  be  not  rash,  unless  there  are  such  benefits  to  be  ob- 
tained as  would  justify  great  risk  in  obtaining  them." 

On  returning  to  the  auberge,  Gervaise  had  a  long  chat  with 
Ralph. 


198  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  I  think  the  admiral's  talk  with  us  this  afternoon  had  an 
excellent  effect,  Gervaise.  I  do  not  say  that  every  one  was 
not  before  disposed  to  obey  you  in  all  things,  willingly  and 
cheerfully  ;  but  he  put  it  so  strongly  to  them  that  they  had 
volunteered  specially  for  service  in  this  galley,  knowing  well 
who  was  to  be  its  commander,  and  the  circumstance  that  the 
crew  was  to  consist  solely  of  young  knights,  and  had  therefore 
specially  pledged  their  honour  so  to  act  that  the  enterprise 
should  be  in  all  respects  a  successful  one.  To  render  it  so, 
obedience  was  even  a  greater  necessity  than  valour.  This  was 
the  most  important  of  all  the  vows  taken  by  the  knights  of  the 
Order,  and  it  was  only  by  the  strictest  and  most  unquestion- 
ing obedience  on  the  part  of  all  to  the  orders  of  their  supe- 
riors, that  the  work  of  a  vast  community  could  be  carried  on. 
Passing  over  the  fact  that  you  were  their  superior  in  rank,  both 
as  being  a  secular  knight  and  a  knight  commander  of  the 
Order,  you  had  been  specially  appointed  by  the  grand  master 
and  council,  as  well  as  by  himself,  and  that  they  bestowed 
upon  you  while  at  sea,  and  in  the  absence  of  any  officers  of 
superior  rank,  their  full  powers  and  authority.  You  were,  in 
fact,  their  representative  and  agent,  and  therefore  to  be  re- 
garded with  the  same  deference  and  respect  that  would  be  due 
to  the  oldest  knight  similarly  placed.  '  Lastly,'  he  said,  in  a 
less  serious  tone,  '  you  must  remember  that  this  is  an  experi- 
ment, and,  as  some  think,  a  somewhat  rash  one.  Never  be- 
fore did  a  galley,  manned  entirely  from  among  the  youngest 
of  our  knights,  put  to  sea  ;  and  you  may  be  sure  that,  unless 
successful,  the  experiment  is  not  likely  to  be  ever  repeated. 
You  have  been  selected  from  among  many  other  candidates, 
and  you  have  not  only  to  justify  the  choice,  but  to  uphold  the 
reputation  and  honour  of  the  young  knights  of  your  Order,  by 
all  of  whom  your  doings  will  be  regarded  with  special  interest, 
as  reflecting  credit  not  only  upon  yourselves  individually,  but 
as  representatives  and  champions  of  them  all. ' 

"I  could  see  that  his  words  had  a  great  effect.     He  had 


THE    BOY-GALLEY  199 

placed  me  beside  him,  and  I  marked  their  faces  as  he  spoke. 
Each  face  lit  up  at  his  appeal,  and  I  do  not  think  there  was 
one  but  silently  registered  a  vow  to  do  all  in  his  power  to 
prove  himself  worthy  of  the  confidence  placed  in  him  and  his 
companions  by  the  grand  master  and  admiral.  I  had  before 
no  shadow  of  fear  that  everything  would  not  go  well.  I  knew 
almost  all  of  them  personally,  and  if  I  myself  had  had  the 
selection  from  among  the  whole  body  of  knights  in  the  con- 
vent, I  could  not  have  made  a  choice  that  would  have  suited 
me  better.  It  seems  to  me  that  in  each  auberge  the  bailiff 
has  endeavoured  to  pick  out  the  seven  young  knights  whom 
he  considered  would  most  worthily  support  the  honour  of  the 
langue.  Still,  confident  as  I  was  before,  I  feel  more  so  now, 
after  the  admiral's  address  to  us." 

' '  I  had  no  fear  either,  Ralph,  though  doubtless  the  admi- 
ral's words  will  carry  great  weight  with  them.  It  was  thought- 
lessness rather  than  anything  else  that  I  dreaded  ;  but  now 
that  the  admiral  himself  has  spoken  to  them,  there  is  no  fear 
that  anything  will  occur  to  give  us  trouble.  I  have  particu- 
larly noticed  that  when  we  have  been  on  board,  and  have 
been  laughing  and  chatting  together  before  we  got  under  way, 
their  manner  changed  directly  the  first  order  was  given,  and 
that  all  the  commands  were  carried  out  with  as  much  good- 
will and  alacrity  as  if  they  were  under  Ricord  himself." 

On  the  following  morning  the  knights  all  went  on  board 
the  Santa  Barbara.  Their  baggage  was  carried  down  by 
slaves,  and  by  the  personal  servants  from  each  auberge  who 
were  to  go  as  their  attendants  during  the  voyage.  The  grand 
master  had  advanced  Gervaise  a  sum  equal  to  half  a  year's  in- 
come of  his  commander y,  and  with  this  he  had  purchased  ,. 
stock  of  the  best  wines,  and  various  other  luxuries,  to  supple- 
ment the  rations  supplied  from  the  funds  of  the  Order  to 
knights  when  at  sea.  Gervaise  had  to  go  round  early  to  the 
admiral  to  sign  the  receipt  for  stores  and  to  receive  his  final 
orders  in  writing.  All  were,  therefore,  on  board  before  him. 


200  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

and,  when  he  arrived,  were  drawn  up  in  military  order  to  re- 
ceive him. 

Every  knight  was  in  full  armour,  and  as,  at  a  word  from 
Ralph,  they  drew  their  swords  and  saluted  the  young  com- 
mander, Gervaise  felt  with  a  thrill  of  pleasure  and  of  confi- 
dence that  with  such  a  following  he  need  not  fear  any  encoun- 
ter with  a  pirate  force,  unless  in  overwhelming  numbers. 

The  young  knights  were  all,  with  the  exception  only  of 
Ralph  Harcourt,  between  the  ages  of  seventeen  and  nineteen, 
and  their  young  faces,  free  in  most  cases  even  from  the  sus- 
picion of  a  moustache,  looked  almost  those  of  boys.  But 
there  was  no  mistaking  the  ardour  and  enthusiasm  in  their 
faces,  and  the  lack  of  breadth  and  weight,  that  years  alone 
could  give  to  them,  was  compensated  by  skill  in  their  weapons, 
acquired  by  long  and  severe  training,  and  by  the  activity  and 
tireless  energy  of  youth. 

"  Knights  and  comrades,"  Gervaise  said  as,  after  walking 
through  the  double  line  to  the  end  of  the  poop  he  turned  and 
faced  them,  "  I  am  proud  indeed  to  command  so  gallant  a 
body  of  knights.  The  success  of  our  expedition  depends  upon 
you  rather  than  upon  me,  and  as  I  feel  assured  of  your  warm 
co-operation  I  have  no  fear  as  to  what  the  result  will  be,  if 
Dame  Fortune  will  but  favour  us  by  throwing  in  our  way 
some  of  those  scourges  of  the  sea  in  search  of  whom  we  are 
about  to  set  out.  Many  of  us  have  already  encountered  them, 
and,  fighting  side  by  side  with  older  knights,  have  borne  our 
share  of  the  work,  while  those  who  have  not  done  so  will,  I 
am  sure,  do  equally  well  when  the  opportunity  arrives.  We 
shall  not  this  voyage  have  the  encouragement  and  confidence 
inspired  by  the  presence  of  those  who  have  long  and  valiantly 
borne  the  standard  of  the  Order ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  we 
have  to  show  that  we  are  worthy  of  the  confidence  reposed 
in  us,  and  that  the  young  knights  of  the  Order  can  be  trusted 
to  emulate  the  deeds  of  those  who  have  rendered  the  name  of 
the  Hospitallers  a  terror  to  the  infidel." 


THE   BOY-GALLEY  201 

A  shout  of  approbation  greeted  the  close  of  his  address. 
Gervaise  then  walked  forward  to  the  end  of  the  poop,  and 
looked  down  upon  the  slaves,  who,  with  their  oars  out,  were 
awaiting  the  order  to  row. 

"  Men,"  he  said  in  Turkish,  "  it  is  my  desire  that,  while  it 
is  necessary  that  you  should  do  your  work,  your  lot  shall  be  no 
heavier  than  can  be  avoided.  You  will  not  be  taxed  beyond 
your  powers,  save  when  the  enemy  is  in  sight,  or  there  is  su- 
preme need  for  haste,  but  then  you  must  be  called  upon  for 
your  utmost  exertions.  I  wish  your  work  to  be  willing.  I 
abhor  the  use  of  the  lash,  and  so  long  as  each  man  does  his 
fair  quota  of  work,  I  have  given  the  strictest  orders  that  it  shall 
never  be  used.  I  have,  at  my  own  cost,  made  provision  that 
your  daily  rations  shall  be  improved  while  under  my  command. 
Meat  will  be  served  out  to  you  daily,  when  it  can  be  obtained, 
and  for  those  of  you  who  hold  that  the  strict  tenets  of  your 
religion  may  be  relaxed  while  engaged  in  such  severe  labour,  a 
ration  of  wine  will  also  be  served  out ;  and  such  other  indul- 
gences as  are  compatible  with  the  discipline  and  safety  of  the 
ship,  will  also  be  granted  to  you." 

There  was  a  murmur  of  gratitude  among  the  slaves.  Ger- 
vaise then  gave  the  order  to  row,  and  the  galley  started  on  her 
voyage.  The  knights  had  now  fallen  out  from  their  ranks, 
and  were  soon  laughing  and  talking  gaily.  Being  all  of  noble 
families  and  knightly  rank,  there  was,  except  when  on  actual 
duty,  a  tone  of  perfect  equality  and  good  fellowship  prevailing 
among  them.  French  was  the  common  language,  for  as  the 
Order  was  of  French  foundation,  and  three  of  the  seven  langues 
belonged  to  that  country,  most  of  the  high  dignitaries  being 
chosen  from  their  ranks,  it  was  natural  that  the  French  lan- 
guage should  be  the  general  medium  of  communication  be- 
tween them. 

Until  noon  the  slaves  rowed  steadily  and  well.  Work  was 
then  stopped,  for  there  was  scarce  a  breath  of  wind  stirring  the 
water.  Even  under  the  awning  that  had,  as  the  sun  gained 


202  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE    WHITE    CROSS 

power,  been  erected  over  the  poop,  the  heat  was  oppressive. 
The  knights  had  all  divested  themselves  of  their  armour,  and 
most  of  them  retired  below  for  a  siesta.  As  soon  as  the  slaves 
stopped  rowing,  an  awning,  which  Gervaise  had  purchased, 
and  which  was  rolled  up  under  the  break  of  the  poop,  was,  to 
their  astonishment,  drawn  over  them. 

"  Don't  you  think  you  are  spoiling  your  slaves,  Sir  Ger- 
vaise ? ' '  one  of  the  Spanish  knights  asked  doubtfully. 

"  On  the  contrary,  Sir  Pedro,  I  hope  that  I  am  improving 
them.  You  have  not  worked  as  a  galley-slave,  but  I  have,  and 
I  can  assure  you  that  I  used  to  feel  the  hours  when  we  were 
lying  broiling  in  the  sun,  doing  nothing,  much  more  trying 
than  those  during  which  I  was  at  work.  I  used  to  be  quite 
giddy  and  sick  with  the  heat,  and  on  getting  out  the  oars  again 
had  scarce  strength  to  work  them.  But  this  is  not  the  most 
important  point.  In  port  the  slaves  always  sleep  in  the  prison, 
but  at  sea  they  must  rest  on  their  benches ;  and  to  do  so  with 
clothes  soaked  with  the  heavy  dew  must  be  a  severe  trial,  and 
most  prejudicial  to  the  health.  The  awning  cost  but  a  few 
ducats,  and  I  reckon  that,  putting  aside  the  comfort  to  the  slaves, 
it  will  be  very  speedily  repaid  by  their  better  health  and  capac- 
ity for  labour.  When  away  in  the  galley  with  Sir  Louis  Ri- 
cord,  I  used  to  feel  the  greatest  pity  for  the  unfortunate 
wretches  when  at  daybreak,  in  their  drenched  clothes,  and 
shivering  with  cold  and  wet,  they  rose  to  commence  their 
work.  I  then  took  a  vow  that  if  ever  I  should  come  to  com- 
mand a  galley  I  would  provide  an  awning  for  the  slaves." 

Two  or  three  of  the  knights  standing  by  expressed  their 
warm  approval  of  what  Gervaise  said.  There  was,  in  those 
days,  but  little  of  that  sentiment  of  humanity  that  is  now  preva- 
lent, and  slaves  were  everywhere  regarded  as  mere  beasts  of 
burden  rather  than  as  human  beings.  When,  however,  they 
had  the  question  put  to  them,  as  Gervaise  had  done,  they  were 
ready  to  give  a  hearty  agreement,  although  it  was  the  utili- 
tarian rather  than  the  humanitarian  side  of  the  question  that 


THE   BOY-GALLEY  203 

recommended  it  to  them.  After  three  hours'  rest  the  journey 
was  renewed,  and  just  at  nightfall  the  galley  anchored  off  an 
islet  lying  to  the  north  of  Carpathos. 

While  the  servants  were  laying  the  tables  along  the  poop  for 
the  evening  meal,  Gervaise  went  down  to  see  that  his  orders 
were  carried  out  regarding  the  food  for  the  slaves.  They  were 
already  eating  their  bread  and  meat  with  an  air  of  satisfaction 
that  showed  how  warmly  they  appreciated  the  unusual  indul- 
gence, while  there  were  few  indeed  who  did  not  hold  up  their 
drinking  horns  as  a  servant  passed  along  between  the  benches 
with  a  skin  of  wine.  Gervaise  spoke  to  many  of  them. 

"Ah,  my  lord,"  one  of  them  said,  "if  we  were  always 
treated  like  this,  slavery  would  be  endurable.  For  ten  years 
have  I  rowed  in  Christian  galleys,  but  never  before  has  an  awn- 
ing been  spread  to  keep  off  the  sun  or  the  dew.  We  shall  not 
forget  your  kindness,  my  lord,  and  will  row  our  hardest  right 
cheerfully  when  you  call  upon  us  for  an  effort." 

There  was  a  murmur  of  assent  from  the  galley-slaves  around. 

"  May  Allah  be  merciful  to  you,  as  you  are  merciful  to 
us  !  "  another  slave  exclaimed.  "  The  blessing  of  those  whom 
you  regard  as  infidels  can  at  least  do  you  no  harm. ' ' 

"On  the  contrary,  it  can  do  me  good,"  Gervaise  said. 
"The  God  you  Moslems  and  we  Christians  worship  is,  I  be- 
lieve, the  same,  though  under  another  name." 

Gervaise  had,  indeed,  during  his  long  conversations  with 
Suleiman  Ali,  often  discussed  with  him  the  matter  of  his  faith, 
and  had  come,  in  consequence,  to  regard  it  in  a  very  different 
light  to  that  in  which  it  was  viewed  by  his  companions.  There 
was  faith  in  one  God  at  the  bottom  of  both  Mohammedanism 
and  Christianity.  The  Mohammedans  held  in  reverence  the 
lawgivers  and  prophets  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  even  re- 
garded Christ  Himself  as  being  a  prophet.  They  had  been 
grievously  led  away  by  Mahomet,  whom  Gervaise  regarded  as 
a  false  teacher  ;  but  as  he  had  seen  innumerable  instances  of 
the  fidelity  of  the  Moslems  to  their  creed,  and  the  punctuality 


A   KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE   CROSS 

and  devotion  with  which  the  slaves  said  their  daily  prayers,  ex- 
posed though  they  were  to  the  scorn  and  even  the  anger  of 
their  taskmasters,  he  had  quite  lost,  during  his  nine  months  of 
constant  association  with  Suleiman  Ali,  the  bigoted  hatred  of 
Mohammedanism  so  universal  at  the  time.  He  regarded  Mos- 
lems as  foes  to  be  opposed  to  the  death  ;  but  he  felt  that  it 
was  unfair  to  hate  them  for  being  hostile  to  Christianity,  of 
which  they  knew  nothing. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE    FIRST   PRIZES 

A  FTER  leaving  the  slaves,  Gervaise  joined  his  companions 
1\  on  the  poop.  They  were  engaged  in  an  animated  dis- 
cussion as  to  whether  it  was  advisable  to  grant  indulgences  to 
slaves.  The  majority  approved  of  the  steps  Gervaise  had  taken, 
but  some  asserted  that  these  concessions  would  only  lead  them 
to  look  for  more,  and  would  create  discontent  among  the 
crews  of  other  galleys  not  so  favoured. 

"  Well,  comrades,"  said  Gervaise,  "  I  think  that  so  far  I  am 
better  qualified  than  any  of  you  to  give  an  opinion  ;  but  it 
may  be  that  it  will  fall  to  the  lot  of  some  of  you  to  be  a  slave 
in  Turkish  hands.  In  that  case,  I  can  affirm  with  certainty, 
that  you  will  keenly  appreciate  any  alleviation,  however  small, 
of  your  lot.  You  must  remember  that  the  one  feeling  of  the 
slave  is  dull  despair.  Death  is  the  only  relief  he  has  to  look 
forward  to.  Do  you  think  that  a  man  so  feeling  can  do  his 
best,  either  at  an  oar  or  at  any  other  kind  of  work  ?  I  am 
sure  it  would  not  be  so  in  my  case.  But  if  you  brighten  his 
life  a  little,  and  show  him  that  he  is  not  regarded  as  merely  a 
brute  beast,  and  that  you  take  some  interest  in  him,  he  will 
work  in  a  different  spirit.  Even  viewed  from  a  merely  mone- 


THE    FIRST    PRIZES  205 

tary  point  of  view  it  must  pay  well  to  render  him  as  content  as 
possible  with  his  lot.  You  know  how  great  is  the  mortality 
among  the  slaves — how  they  pine  away  and  die  from  no  ma- 
terial malady  that  can  be  detected,  but  simply  from  hopeless- 
ness and  weariness  of  life,  aided,  undoubtedly,  in  the  case  of  the 
galley-slaves,  by  sleeping  in  the  damp  night  air  after  an  expos- 
ure all  day  to  the  full  heat  of  the  sun.  This  brings  an  answer 
to  your  second  objection.  Undoubtedly  it  might  cause  dis- 
content among  the  slaves  of  other  galleys  when  they  hear  that 
others  are  treated  better  than  themselves.  But  I  hope  that  if, 
on  our  return,  we  bring  back  all  our  slaves  in  good  condition 
and  health,  the  contrast  between  their  appearance  and  that  of 
the  slaves  in  most  other  galleys  will  be  so  marked  that  the  ad- 
miral may  consider  it  would  be  well  to  order  awnings  to  be 
fixed  to  all  the  vessels  of  the  Order,  and  even  to  grant  to  all 
slaves,  when  away  on  voyages,  the  little  indulgences  I  have 
given  them  here.  The  expense  would  be  very  trifling,  and  it 
would  certainly  add  a  great  deal  to  the  average  life  of  a  slave, 
and  would  render  him  capable  of  better  work.  There  is  an- 
other advantage.  If  the  Turks  learn  that  their  countrymen  in 
our  hands  are  treated  with  a  certain  amount  of  kindness  and 
consideration,  it  might  lead  them  to  act  similarly  to  those  of 
our  Order  who  may  be  unfortunate  enough  to  fall  into  their 
hands. ' ' 

"  There  is  a  great  deal  in  what  you  say,  Sir  Gervaise,"  one 
of  the  knights,  who  had  before  taken  the  opposite  point  of 
view,  said.  "  There  is  no  reason  why  our  galley  should  not 
be  a  model  one,  and  though,  like  enough,  the  seniors  will 
laugh  at  our  making  innovations,  D'Aubusson  is  a  reformer, 
and  will  certainly  support  anything  that  he  sees  to  be  bene- 
ficial, from  whatever  quarter  it  comes." 

Supper  was  now  served,  and  the  young  knights  were  well 
pleased  with  the  entertainment  provided  for  them.  It  was  the 
principal  meal  of  the  day.  Their  fast  was  broken  by  a  glass 
of  wine,  a  manchet  of  bread,  and  fruit  soon  after  rising.  At 


206  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE   WHITE    CROSS 

eleven  o'clock  they  sat  down  to  a  more  substantial  meal;  but 
in  that  climate  the  heat  was  at  that  hour  considerable,  and  as 
there  were  duties  to  be  performed,  there  was  no  sitting  long 
at  table.  At  supper  the  day's  work  was  over,  their  appetite 
was  sharpened  by  the  cool  evening  breeze,  and  the  meal  was 
hearty  and  prolonged.  After  it  was  concluded,  several  of  the 
knights  brought  up  from  below  viols  and  other  instruments  of 
music ;  for  the  ability  to  accompany  the  voice  with  such  an 
instrument  was  considered  an  essential  part  of  the  education  of 
a  knight. 

For  some  hours  the  songs  and  romances,  so  popular  at  the 
time,  were  sung  in  the  various  languages  represented  on  board  ; 
then  the  knights,  one  by  one,  went  down  to  their  sleeping 
places,  until  only  the  seven  knights  of  the  langue  of  Auvergne, 
who  were  to  watch  the  first  night,  remained  on  deck.  Five  of 
these  wrapped  themselves  in  their  mantles  and  lay  down  on 
the  benches.  One  of  the  others  descended  to  the  waist, 
walked  along  the  plank  between  the  lines  of  sleeping  slaves, 
and  took  up  his  place  in  the  bow,  while  the  other  paced  up 
and  down  the  poop,  the  fall  of  his  footsteps  being  the  only 
sound  to  break  the  silence  that  reigned  throughout  the  ship. 

In  the  morning,  as  soon  as  the  knights  had  all  taken  a 
plunge  in  the  sea,  the  oars  were  got  out,  and  the  galley  pro- 
ceeded on  her  way.  Passing  through  the  islands  and  skirting 
the  southern  shore  of  Greece,  she  continued  her  course  west. 
Malta  was  sighted,  but  they  did  not  put  in  there.  Pantellaria 
was  passed,  and  in  a  fortnight  after  leaving  Rhodes,  Cape 
Bon,  at  the  entrance  to  the  bay  of  Tunis,  was  sighted.  Un- 
til Greece  was  left  behind  them,  the  nights  had  generally  been 
spent  in  small  ports,  where  supplies  of  fresh  meat,  fish,  and 
fruit,  were  obtainable.  So  far  no  incident  had  marked  the 
voyage.  The  weather  had  continued  fine,  and  they  had  heard 
nothing,  from  ships  they  had  fallen  in  with,  of  any  Moslem 
pirates  having  been  seen.  A  few  hours,  however,  after  sight- 
ing the  coast  of  Africa,  a  dark  object  was  seen  ahead. 


;YOU    HAVE   BEEN    ATTACKED   BY    PIRATES,"    GERVAISE   SAID. 


THE   FIRST    PRIZES  207 

"  It  is  a  ship  of  some  sort,"  Ralph  said ;  "  but  her  masts 
have  gone.  It  may  be  that  she  is  a  merchantman  that  has 
been  captured  and  sacked  by  the  Moorish  pirates." 

Orders  were  given  to  the  rowers  to  quicken  their  pace,  and  in 
little  over  an  hour  they  were  alongside  the  hull.  As  soon  as 
the  vessels  were  close  enough  for  those  on  the  poop  of  the  galley 
to  look  down  on  to  the  deck  of  the  other  craft,  it  was  seen  that 
Ralph's  suppositions  were  correct.  Two  bodies  lay  stretched 
upon  it.  One  was  crushed  under  the  fallen  mast ;  the  other  lay 
huddled  up  in  a  heap,  a  cannon-ball  having  almost  torn  him 
asunder.  The  knights  leapt  on  to  the  deck  as  soon  as  the 
galley  ran  alongside.  Gervaise  made  first  for  the  man  lying 
beneath  the  mast ;  as  he  came  up  to  him,  the  sailor  opened 
his  eyes  and  murmured,  "  Water  !  "  Gervaise  called  out  to 
one  of  the  servants  to  bring  water  from  the  galley,  and,  as  soon 
as  it  came,  poured  some  between  the  man's  lips,  and  the  knights 
by  their  united  efforts  lifted  the  mast  from  across  his  body.  It 
was  evident,  however,  that  he  had  but  a  short  time  to  live, 
and  the  dew  of  death  was  on  his  face.  After  a  few  minutes  he 
rallied  a  little,  and  looked  gratefully  at  his  rescuers. 

' '  You  have  been  attacked  by  pirates, ' '  Gervaise  said.  ' '  Was 
there  one  galley,  or  two  ?  " 

"  Three  galleys,"  the  man  replied  in  a  faint  whisper. 

' '  Do  you  know  where  they  were  from  ?  ' ' 

"  Tripoli." 

"  How  long  ago?  " 

"  It  was  about  three  hours  after  sunrise  when  we  saw  them 
coming  up,"  the  man  said,  his  voice  gaining  in  strength,  as 
some  wine  they  gave  him  took  effect.  ' '  It  was  useless  to  fight, 
and  I  hauled  down  our  flag,  but  in  spite  of  that  one  of  the 
pirates  fired  a  broadside,  and  one  of  the  shot  hit  the  mast  and 
brought  it  down,  and  I  was  crushed  under  it.  They  boarded 
us,  took  off  all  the  crew  as  captives,  and  emptied  the  hold  ;  I 
knew  that  I  was  done  for,  and  begged  them  to  kill  me  ;  but 
they  paid  no  attention.  I  know  a  little  of  their  language, 


208  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE   WHITE    CROSS 

and  as  I  lay  there  I  caught  something  of  what  they  were  say- 
ing ;  they  are  bound  for  the  Island  of  Sardinia,  where  they 
have  a  rendezvous,  and  are  to  join  a  great  gathering  of  their 
consorts.  I  don't  know  the  name  of  the  place,  but  it  is  on 
the  east  coast.  More  water  !  " 

Gervaise  knelt  to  pour  some  water  between  his  lips,  when 
he  gave  a  sudden  cry,  a  shudder  ran  through  his  frame,  and 
he  was  dead. 

"  Let  us  return  on  board,  gentlemen,"  Gervaise  said,  rising 
to  his  feet.  "  We  can  do  nothing  here." 

As  soon  as  he  regained  the  deck  of  the  galley,  he  signed  to 
Ralph  to  follow  him  below. 

"Now,  Ralph,"  he  said,  "this  is  one  of  those  cases  in 
which  we  have  to  decide  whether  we  ought  or  ought  not  to  be 
prudent.  From  what  that  poor  fellow  said,  the  pirates  have 
about  five  hours'  start  of  us,  and  as  they  can  have  no  idea 
that  they  are  pursued,  we  can  doubtless  overtake  them  before 
they  reach  Sardinia.  The  question  is,  ought  we  to  pursue 
them  at  once,  or  ought  we  to  coast  along  until  we  find  Vis- 
conti's  galley?  Three  of  these  Tripoli  pirates,  crowded  as 
they  always  are  with  men,  would  prove  serious  opponents,  yet 
we  might  engage  them  with  a  fair  hope  of  victory.  But  we 
may  be  seriously  disabled  in  the  fight,  and  should  be,  perhaps, 
unable  to  carry  the  news  to  Genoa  that  there  are  many  pirate 
ships  gathering  on  the  coast  of  Sardinia  to  prey  upon  their 
commerce. ' ' 

"We  might  be  days,  or  even  weeks,  before  we  light  upon 
Visconti's  galley,  Gervaise,  and  even  when  we  found  it,  he 
might  not  consider  himself  justified  in  leaving  the  coast  where 
he  is  stationed.  Besides,  while  we  are  spending  our  time 
looking  for  him,  the  pirates  will  be  committing  terrible  depre- 
dations. It  must  be  a  big  expedition,  under  some  notorious 
pirate,  or  they  would  never  venture  so  far  north. ' ' 

"  Then  you  think  that  I  should  be  justified  in  pursuing  them 
alone.  It  is  a  fearful  responsibility  to  have  to  decide." 


THE    FIRST    PRIZES  209 

"  I  think  so,  Gervaise.  There  is  no  saying  what  misfort- 
unes might  happen  if  we  did  not  venture  to  do  so." 

"  Very  well  then,  so  be  it.  But  before  deciding  finally  on 
so  grave  a  matter,  I  will  lay  it  before  the  company." 

"  There  is  no  doubt  as  to  what  their  decision  will  be," 
Ralph  said,  with  a  smile. 

' '  Perhaps  not,  Ralph ;  but  as  they  will  be  called  upon  to 
risk  their  lives  in  a  dangerous  enterprise,  it  is  as  well  that  they 
should  have  a  say  in  the  matter. ' ' 

When  they  returned  on  to  the  poop,  there  was  an  expres- 
sion of  eagerness  and  excitement  on  the  faces  of  the  young 
knights  which  showed  how  anxiously  they  had  been  awaiting 
the  result  of  the  conference  below.  Gervaise  stepped  on  to  a 
bench,  and  motioned  to  them  to  close  up  round  him. 

"  Comrades,"  he  said,  "  although  the  responsibility  of  what- 
ever course  may  be  taken  must  rest  upon  my  shoulders,  yet  I 
think  it  but  right  that,  as  a  general  before  a  battle  often  calls 
a  council  of  war  to  assist  him  with  its  advice,  so  I  should  lay 
before  you  the  two  courses  open  to  us,  and  ask  your  opinion 
upon  them.  Sir  Ralph  Har court  and  I  are  of  one  mind  in 
the  matter,  but  as  the  decision  is  a  grave  one  we  should  be 
loth  to  act  upon  it  without  your  concurrence."  He  then  re- 
peated the  alternatives  as  he  had  laid  them  before  Ralph. 
"  Now,"  he  went  on,  "  as  you  see,  there  is  grave  danger,  and 
much  risk  in  the  one  course ;  but  if  successful  its  advantages 
are  obvious.  On  the  other  handr  the  second  plan  is  more 
sure,  more  prudent,  and  more  in  accordance  with  the  instruc- 
tions I  have  received.  I  ask  you  to  let  me  know  frankly  your 
opinion  on  the  subject.  If  your  view  agrees  with  ours,  al- 
though it  will  not  relieve  me  from  the  responsibility  of  decid- 
ing, it  will  at  least,  in  the  event  of  things  turning  out  badly, 
be  a  satisfaction  to  know  that  the  course  had  your  approval, 
and  that  it  was  your  desire,  as  well  as  ours,  that  we  should 
undertake  it.  First,  then,  let  all  who  are  in  favour  of  follow- 
ing the  pirates  go  to  the  starboard  side  of  the  deck,  while 


210  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

those  who  are  in  favour  of  joining  Visconti,  and  laying  this 
serious  matter  we  have  discovered  before  him,  move  to  the 
larboard  side." 

There  was  a  rush  of  the  knights  to  the  right,  and  not  one 
moved  to  the  other  side. 

"  Your  decision  is  the  same  as  ours,"  Gervaise  said.  "  To 
the  north,  then  !  If  there  is  great  peril  in  the  adventure, 
there  is  also  great  honour  to  be  gained." 

The  knights  gave  a  shout  of  satisfaction  at  finding  that 
their  choice  was  also  that  of  the  officers. 

"  Lay  her  head  to  the  north,"  Gervaise  said  to  the  pilot. 
Then  he  went  to  the  end  of  the  poop,  and  ordered  the  slaves 
to  row  on.  ''Row  a  long,  steady  stroke,  such  as  you  can 
maintain  for  many  hours.  We  have  a  long  journey  before  us, 
and  there  is  need  for  haste.  Now  is  the  time  for  willing  work. " 

The  oars  dipped  into  the  water,  and  the  galley  was  soon 
moving  along  at  a  much  faster  pace  than  that  at  which  they 
had  performed  the  journey  from  Rhodes.  The  slaves  had  not, 
from  their  benches,  been  able  to  see  what  had  passed  on  board 
the  dismantled  vessel,  but  from  the  order  and  the  change  of 
course,  they  had  no  doubt  that  the  knights  had  obtained  some 
clue  to  the  direction  taken  by  the  corsairs  who  had  captured 
and  sacked  the  ship. 

"  There  is  but  little  wind,"  Gervaise  said  to  Ralph,  "  and 
their  sails  will  be  of  slight  use  to  them  ;  therefore  we  shall  go 
fully  three  feet  to  their  two.  It  is  quite  possible  that  we  may 
not  catch  sight  of  them,  for  we  cannot  tell  exactly  the  course 
they  will  take.  We  shall  steer  for  Cape  Carbonara,  which  is 
some  hundred  and  thirty  miles  distant.  If  we  do  not  see  them 
by  the  time  we  get  there,  we  shall  be  sure  that  we  have  passed 
them  on  the  way,  unless,  indeed,  a  strong  wind  should  spring 
up  from  the  south.  However,  I  hope  that  we  shall  catch 
sight  of  them  before  that,  for  we  shall  be  able  from  our  look- 
out to  discover  their  masts  and  sails  some  eight  or  ten  miles 
away,  while  they  will  not  be  able  to  see  us  until  we  are  with- 


THE    FIRST    PRIZES  211 

in  half  that  distance.  They  cannot  be  more  than  twenty 
miles  away  now,  for  the  light  breeze  will  aid  them  but  little, 
and  as  they  will  see  no  occasion  for  haste,  they  will  not  be  row- 
ing at  their  full  power,  with  so  long  a  passage  before  them." 

Already,  indeed,  one  of  the  knights  had  perched  himself  on 
the  seat  at  the  top  of  a  low  mast  some  fifteen  feet  above  the 
poop,  that  served  as  a  look-out. 

' '  You  can  see  nothing  yet,  I  suppose,  Cairoli  ?  ' ' 

"  No ;  the  line  of  sea  is  clear  all  round." 

It  was  indeed  some  four  hours  before  the  knight  on  the  look- 
out cried  that  he  could  make  out  three  dark  specks  on  the 
horizon.  Gervaise  at  once  ascended  to  the  look-out,  by  the 
ladder  that  was  fixed  against  the  post. 

' '  They  are  making  to  the  left  of  the  course  we  are  taking. 
Turn  her  head  rather  more  to  the  west.  That  will  do.  They 
are  directly  ahead  now."  He  then  came  down  to  the  deck 
again.  "  I  would  that  we  had  seven  or  eight  more  hours  of 
daylight,  Ralph,  instead  of  but  three  at  the  outside.  How- 
ever, as  we  know  the  course  they  are  taking,  we  are  not  likely 
to  miss  them,  for  as  we  shall  not  be  near  enough  for  them  to 
make  us  out  before  the  sun  sets,  there  will  be  no  chance  of 
their  changing  it.  Do  you  think  they  will  row  all  night?  " 

"  I  should  not  think  so.  If  the  land  were  nearer  they  might 
keep  on  until  they  make  it,  but  as  they  have  had  no  wind  since 
daylight,  they  will  lie  on  their  oars  until  morning.  You  see,  at 
sunset  they  will  still  be  some  eighty  miles  from  Cape  Carbonara, 
and  the  slaves  could  not  possibly  row  that  distance  without  rest ; 
so  that  if  we  keep  on  we  may  take  them  by  surprise." 

"That  is  what  I  have  been  thinking,  Ralph,  but  it  would 
be  well  not  to  attack  them  until  nearly  daybreak.  We  should 
capture  one  galley  easily  enough ;  but  the  others,  being  igno- 
rant of  our  force,  might  make  off  in  different  directions,  and 
we  might  lose  both  of  them.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  we  could 
fall  upon  them  a  short  time  before  daylight,  we  should  be 
able  to  keep  them  in  sight,  and,  even  if  they  separated,  they 


212  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

would  soon  come  together  and  continue  their  course,  or,  as  I 
hope,  when  they  see  that  we  are  alone,  bear  up  and  fight  us. 
I  think  that  our  best  plan  will  be  to  row  on  until  it  is  dark, 
then  give  the  slaves  six  hours'  rest,  and  after  that  go  on  quietly. 
If  we  can  make  them  out,  which  we  may  do  if  they  have  lights 
on  board,  we  will  stop,  and  wait  until  it  is  the  hour  to  attack 
them.  If  we  miss  them,  we  will  row  on  to  Sardinia  and  lie 
up,  as  we  proposed,  until  they  come  along." 

"  I  think  that  will  be  a  very  good  plan,  Gervaise." 

Before  sunset  the  three  pirate  ships  could  be  clearly  made 
out  from  the  deck,  but  the  pilot  judged  them  to  be  fully  ten 
miles  away.  Half  an  hour  later  the  slaves  were  told  to  cease 
rowing.  Gervaise  had  ordered  the  cooks  to  prepare  them  a 
good  meal,  and  this  was  at  once  served,  together  with  a  full 
ration  of  wine.  As  soon  as  they  had  consumed  it,  they  were 
told  to  lie  down  and  sleep,  as  at  one  o'clock  the  galley  would 
be  again  under  way. 

The  knights'  supper  was  served  below,  as  lights  on  the  poop 
might  be  made  out,  should  a  look-out  be  placed  by  the  cor- 
sairs in  their  tops. 

1 '  We  had  better  follow  the  example  of  the  galley-slaves, ' ' 
Gervaise  said,  rising  as  soon  as  the  meal  was  finished,  "and, 
with  the  exception  of  Spain,  who  is  on  watch,  turn  in  to  sleep 
till  we  are  off  again.  All  of  you  will,  of  course,  don  your 
armour  on  rising," 

At  the  appointed  hour  the  galley  was  again  under  way. 
There  was  not  a  breath  of  air,  and  before  starting,  pieces  of 
cloth  were  wrapped  round  the  oars  at  the  rowlocks  to  deaden 
the  sound,  which  might  otherwise  have  been  heard  at  a  consid- 
erable distance  on  so  still  a  night.  After  an  hour  and  a  half's 
rowing,  the  knight  on  the  look-out  said  that  he  could  see  a 
light  some  distance  ahead.  The  pilot,  an  experienced  old 
sailor,  joined  him,  and  speedily  descended  to  the  poop  again. 

"It  is  a  ship's  light,"  he  said.  "  I  should  say  that  it  was 
a  lantern  on  board  the  ship  of  the  captain  of  the  expedition, 


THE  FIRST   PRIZES  213 

and  is  shown  to  enable  the  other  two  to  keep  near  him.  I  can- 
not say  how  far  it  is  away,  for  I  do  not  know  at  what  height 
it  hangs  above  the  water  ;  but  I  should  imagine,  from  the  fee- 
bleness of  the  light,  that  it  must  be  some  two  miles  distant." 

As  soon  as  the  light  had  been  noticed,  the  slaves  had  been 
ordered  to  cease  rowing,  and  they  were  now  told  that  they 
would  not  be  required  again  for  fully  two  hours.  When  the 
first  gleam  of  dawn  appeared  in  the  east  they  were  called  to 
their  work  again.  The  lantern  was  still  burning,  and,  in  a 
quarter  of  an  hour,  the  knights  on  the  poop  were  able,  in  the 
broadening  light,  to  make  out  three  shadowy  forms  some  two 
miles  ahead  of  them.  They  decreased  this  distance  by  more 
than  half  before  they  could  discern  any  signs  of  life  or  motion 
on  board.  Then  a  sudden  stir  was  apparent ;  they  could  hear 
shouts  from  one  vessel  to  another,  oars  were  thrust  out,  and  an 
effort  made  to  get  the  heads  of  the  ships  in  the  same  direction, 
so  as  to  catch  the  light  breeze  that  had  just  sprung  up. 

The  moment  he  saw  that  the  galley  was  discovered,  Gervaise 
shouted  down  to  the  slaves  to  row  their  hardest,  and  told  the 
pilot  to  steer  for  the  ship  farthest  to  the  east.  She  was  some 
four  or  five  hundred  yards  from  her  nearest  consort,  and  the 
same  distance  separated  that  vessel  from  the  third  craft. 

"  We  shall  have  time  to  carry  her,  Ralph,  before  the  others 
come  to  her  assistance,  and  they  will  only  arrive  one  at  a  time. 
If  we  were  to  lie  alongside  the  middle  craft,  which  is  probably 
that  of  the  chief,  as  it  is  she  that  has  the  light  burning,  we 
might  have  the  other  two  upon  us  before  we  had  done  with  her, 
for  she  is  evidently  the  largest,  and  most  likely  the  strongest- 
handed,  of  them." 

The  leader  of  the  pirates  evidently  saw  that  there  was  no 
chance  of  evading  the  fight.  A  flag  was  run  up  to  the  mast- 
head of  his  ship,  and  the  three  vessels  began  to  endeavour  to 
turn,  so  as  to  meet  the  galley.  The  operation,  however,  took 
sometime.  In  the  confusion,  orders  were  misunderstood,  and 
instead  of  all  the  slaves  on  one  side  rowing  whilst  those  on  the 


214  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

other  side  backed,  all  order  was  lost,  and  long  before  the  craft 
for  which  the  galley  was  making  had  got  round,  the  latter  was 
upon  her. 

' '  Shall  I  ram  her,  Sir  Gervaise  ?  "  the  pilot  asked. 

"  No  ;  we  might  damage  ourselves ;  besides,  I  do  not  want 
to  sink  her.  Sheer  away  the  oars  on  one  side  !  " 

The  galley  carried  eight  guns — three  on  each  side  of  the 
poop,  and  two  forward ;  and  these  had  been  loaded  with  small 
pieces  of  iron.  A  few  shots  had  been  fired  by  the  pirates,  but, 
owing  to  the  confusion  that  prevailed  on  board,  the  guns  were 
discharged  so  hurriedly  that  the  shot  either  flew  overhead  or 
passed  wide  of  the  galley.  Excited  as  the  young  knights  were, 
and  eager  for  the  fray,  a  general  laugh  broke  out  as  the  galley 
swept  along  by  the  pirate-ship,  breaking  many  of  her  oars,  and 
hurling  all  the  slaves  who  manned  them  backwards  off  their 
benches.  A  moment  later  the  guns  poured  their  iron  contents 
among  the  pirates  who  clustered  thickly  on  the  forecastle  and 
poop,  and  as  the  vessels  grated  together  the  knights  sprang  on 
board  the  corsair. 

The  members  of  the  English  langue  had  each  been  provided 
with  short  pieces  of  rope,  and  before  joining  their  companions 
in  the  fray  they  lashed  the  vessels  together,  side  by  side.  The 
fight  was  a  very  short  one.  France  and  Auvergne,  led  by 
Ralph  Harcourt,  boarded  at  the  bow,  the  other  five  langues 
at  the  poop  ;  and  so  impetuous  was  their  onset  that  the  pirates, 
who  had  still  scafce  recovered  from  their  surprise  at  being  has- 
tily aroused  from  sleep  to  repel  the  attack  of  the  foe  who  had 
so  suddenly  sprung  out  from  the  darkness  upon  them, 
offered  but  a  feeble  resistance.  Many  threw  themselves  over- 
board, and  swam  to  the  ship  nearest  to  them ;  others  were  cut 
down  ;  and  the  rest  flung  away  their  arms,  and  cried  for  quarter. 

All  who  did  so  were,  without  the  loss  of  a  minute's  time, 
thrown  down  into  the  hold  of  their  ship,  and  the  hatches  se- 
cured over  them.  It  had  before  been  arranged  that  Ralph 
should  take  the  command  of  the  corsair,  having  with  him 


THE   FIRST   PRIZES  215 

France,  Auvergne,  and  Germany.  As  soon,  therefore,  as  the 
captives  were  fastened  below,  Gervaise  called  the  knights  of  the 
other  four  langues  back  to  the  deck  of  the  galley.  The  lash- 
ings were  cast  off,  she  was  pushed  from  the  side  of  the  prize, 
and  the  oars  were  got  out.  There  was  no  time  to  be  lost,  for 
the  largest  of  the  three  pirate-ships,  which  had,  directly  it  was 
seen  that  her  consort  was  captured,  poured  two  heavy  broad- 
sides into  the  prize,  was  now  approaching — rowing  but  slowly, 
however,  for  the  third  vessel  to  come  up. 

She  was  but  a  hundred  yards  away  when  the  galley  swept 
round  the  bow  of  the  prize  and  advanced  to  meet  her.  As  she 
did  so,  Ralph  discharged  the  eight  guns  of  the  prize,  which  he 
had  at  once  re-loaded,  into  the  bow  of  the  corsair,  the  shot 
raking  the  crowded  deck  from  end  to  end.  When  but  a  few 
yards  distant,  the  two  bow  guns  of  the  galley  poured  in  a 
shower  of  missiles,  and  a  moment  later  she  ran  alongside  the 
pirate,  the  poop  guns,  as  before,  preparing  the  way  for  the 
boarders.  But  no  sooner  had  they  leapt  on  deck  than  they 
were  met  by  the  pirates,  headed  by  their  captain. 

Gervaise  had  specially  charged  the  knights  not  to  allow 
themselves  to  be  carried  away  by  their  ardour.  "  We  are 
sure  to  be  greatly  outnumbered,  and,  when  we  first  spring  on 
board,  we  must  cut  our  way  across  the  deck,  and  then  form 
ourselves  in  a  double  or  treble  line  across  it,  and,  so  fighting, 
gradually  force  them  before  us." 

This,  in  spite  of  the  efforts  of  the  pirates,  was  accomplished, 
and,  once  formed,  the  corsairs  strove  in  vain  to  break  through 
the  wall  of  steel.  For  a  time,  however,  no  forward  movement 
could  be  made,  so  furious  were  the  attacks  upon  them,  led  by 
the  pirate  chief.  Several  times  breaches  were  made  in  the 
front  rank,  but  the  knights  behind  each  time  bore  back  the 
assault,  and  restored  the  line.  The  knights  had  won  their  way 
half  along  the  poop  when  a  yell  of  exultation  rose  from  the 
corsairs  as  the  third  of  their  vessels  rowed  up  on  the  other  side 
of  the  galley,  and  her  crew  sprang  on  board  it.  Gervaise 


216  A   KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE   CROSS 

called  the  knights  of  the  second  line  from  their  places,  and 
ranged  them  along  the  bulwark,  to  prevent  the  Moors  from 
boarding  from  the  poop  of  the  galley. 

Then  for  a  moment  he  looked  round.  The  prize  was  creep- 
ing up,  and  was  a  length  or  two  away,  coming  up  alongside. 
Its  approach  was  also  noticed  by  the  pirates,  who,  with  wild 
shouts,  flung  themselves  upon  their  opponents.  Gervaise 
sprang  forward  to  take  the  place  of  a  young  Italian  knight, 
who  staggered  back,  with  his  helmet  cleft  by  a  heavy  blow 
from  the  keen  yataghan  of  the  pirate  captain.  The  corsair, 
shouting  his  war-cry  of  "  Allah  !  "  sprang  with  the  bound  of  a 
wild  cat  upon  Gervaise ;  his  weapon  descended  on  his  uplifted 
guard,  and  shore  right  through  the  stout  blade.  With  a  shout 
of  triumph,  the  corsair  raised  his  arm  to  repeat  the  blow ; 
but  Gervaise  in  turn  sprang  forward,  and  struck  with  all  his 
force  with  the  pummel  of  his  sword  on  the  forehead  of  his 
opponent.  The  latter  fell  as  if  shot,  his  weapon  dropping 
from  his  hand  beside  him. 

Dismayed  at  the  fall  of  their  leader,  his  followers  recoiled 
for  a  moment.  Another  tall  pirate  sprang  forward  to  take 
his  place,  and,  shouting  to  them  to  follow,  was  about  to  throw 
himself  upon  Gervaise,  when  a  gun  crashed  out  close  along- 
side. A  storm  of  iron  swept  away  the  front  line  of  Moors, 
and  the  shout  of  "  St.  John  !  "  "St.  John  !  "  rose  above  the 
din.  It  was  one  of  the  bow  guns  of  the  prize,  and  as  she  swept 
along  gun  after  gun  poured  its  contents  among  the  pirates. 

"  Do  you  clear  the  galley,  Ralph.  We  can  manage  here 
now,"  Gervaise  said,  as  Ralph  leapt  on  board.  The  latter, 
followed  by  his  party  of  knights,  rushed  across  the  poop,  and 
sprang  on  to  the  galley  among  the  pirates,  who  had  been  striv- 
ing in  vain  to  break  through  the  line  of  defenders.  Gervaise 
called  to  his  party  to  follow  him,  and,  taking  the  offensive, 
fell  upon  the  remnant  of  the  corsairs  who  still  held  the  for- 
ward end  of  the  poop. 

The  discharge  of  the  cannon  at  such  close  quarters  had 


THE   FIRST   PRI2ES  2l7 

wrought  terrible  havoc  among  them,  and  the  pirates,  with 
but  slight  resistance,  turned,  and  either  ran  down  the  ladder 
or  leapt  into  the  water.  The  knights  followed  them  forward 
among  the  benches  of  the  rowers,  who  cheered  loudly  in  many 
tongues  as  they  passed  them.  At  the  forecastle  the  Moors 
made  another  stand,  but  the  knights  forced  their  way  up,  and 
in  two  minutes  all  was  over. 

"  Now  to  the  aid  of  our  comrades  !  "  Gervaise  shouted,  as 
the  last  of  the  corsairs  was  struck  down. 

Ralph's  party  had  indeed  cleared  the  poop  of  the  galley, 
but  they  in  vain  endeavoured  to  climb  up  on  to  that  of  the 
third  pirate-ship,  whose  superior  height  gave  a  great  advantage 
to  its  defenders.  Gervaise  leapt  down  on  to  the  bow  of  the 
galley,  followed  by  the  knights,  and  then  ran  aft  until  he 
could  climb  into  the  waist  of  the  pirate.  So  intent  were  the 
corsairs  upon  defending  the  poop  that  they  did  not  see  what 
was  going  on  elsewhere,  and  Gervaise  had  obtained  a  fair 
footing  before  he  was  noticed.  Then  a  number  of  men  ran 
down  and  attacked  his  party.  But  it  was  too  late,  for  the 
whole  of  the  knights  had,  by  this  time,  leaped  on  board. 
Their  assailants  were  forced  back,  and,  pressing  close  upon 
them,  the  knights  gained  the  poop  before  the  main  body  of 
the  pirates  were  aware  of  their  coming. 

Warned  by  the  shouts  and  shrieks  of  their  comrades  that 
they  had  been  taken  in  the  rear,  the  Moslems  who  were  de- 
fending the  side  of  the  poop  wavered  for  a  momert.  Ralph 
took  advantage  of  their  hesitation,  and  sprang  on  board,  his 
companions  pouring  in  after  him.  There  was  a  stern  and  des- 
perate fight.  The  Moslems  fought  with  the  fury  of  despair, 
disdaining  to  ask  or  accept  quarter.  A  few  leapt  overboard, 
preferring  death  by  drowning  to  that  by  the  swords  of  the 
Christians ;  but  the  great  majority  died  fighting  to  the  last. 
A  shout  of  triumph  rose  from  the  knights  as  the  last  of  the 
Moslems  fell. 

The  first  impulse  of  all  of  them  was  to  take  off  their  helmets 


218  A   KNIGHT  Of  THE  WHITE   CROSS 

in  order  to  breathe  the  fresh  air,  and  for  a  while  they  all  stood 
panting  from  their  exertions. 

"  Nobly  and  gallantly  done,  comrades !  "  Gervaise  exclaimed. 
' '  This  is  indeed  a  victory  of  which  we  have  all  a  right  to  be 
proud.  Now,  the  first  thing  is  to  free  the  slaves  of  their 
shackles ;  there  are  many  white  faces  among  them.  Let  our 
langue  look  after  the  wounded,  while  the  released  captives  clear 
the  decks  of  the  bodies  of  the  fallen  pirates. ' ' 

It  took  an  hour's  hard  work  to  knock  off  the  chains  of  the 
slaves.  The  greater  portion  of  them  were  Christians — Greeks, 
Italians,  Spaniards,  and  French,  who  had  been  captured  in 
various  raids  by  the  corsairs ;  and  among  them  were  the  crew 
of  the  ship  that  had  been  overhauled  by  the  galley  on  the  pre- 
vious day.  Besides  these,  there  were  a  few  Moslems  who  had 
been  sentenced  to  labour  in  the  galleys  for  various  crimes. 

Among  the  Christians,  the  joy  at  their  liberation  was  intense. 
Some  laughed,  some  cried,  others  were  too  overcome  to  speak 
coherently.  Among  the  rest  were  found,  to  the  intense  pleas- 
ure of  their  rescuers,  three  knights  of  the  Order  who  had  for 
years  been  missing.  They  had  been  taken  prisoners  on  an  isl- 
and at  which  the  galley  to  which  they  belonged  had  touched. 
Many  of  the  knights  had  landed,  and  three  of  them,  all  be- 
longing to  the  langue  of  Italy,  had  wandered  away  from  the 
rest,  and  had  not  returned.  A  search  had  been  made  for 
them,  and  it  was  discovered  that  a  struggle  had  taken  place. 
As  there  were'  no  marks  of  blood,  it  was  supposed  that  they 
were  suddenly  pounced  upon  by  a  party  of  hidden  marauders, 
who  had  been  watching  them  from  some  hiding-place,  and  had 
thrown  themselves  upon  the  knights  before  they  had  had  time 
to  draw  their  swords.  Following  the  trail  by  bushes  broken 
down,  and  plants  crushed  under  foot,  it  was  found  to  lead  to  a 
creek  on  the  other  side  of  the  island.  Here  there  were  signs 
that  a  craft  had  been  anchored,  as  there  were  the  ashes  of  fires, 
fragments  of  food,  and  other  matters,  scattered  about  on  the 
shore.  Hours  had  passed  before  the  knights  had  been  missed, 


THE  THREE   KNIGHTS   OF  THE  CROSS   GIVE    THANKS   FOR   THEIR 
RELEASE. 


THE    FIRST    PRIZES  219 

and  therefore  the  craft  in  which  they  had  been  carried  off  was 
long  out  of  sight.  Letters  were  written  by  the  grand  master 
to  the  Pasha  of  Syria,  to  the  Emperor  of  Egypt,  and  to  the  Bey 
of  Tunis,  offering  to  ransom  the  knights,  but  all  replied  that 
they  were  unaware  of  any  such  captives  having  been  landed. 

An  attempt  had  then  been  made  to  ascertain  whether  they 
had  been  carried  to  Tripoli ;  but  the  bey  had  little  authority 
over  the  various  tribesmen  along  the  coast,  and  only  replied 
that  no  such  captives  had  been  sold  in  the  city.  Thus  all  hope 
of  ransoming  them  had  died  away,  and  their  names  were  in- 
scribed in  the  list  of  those  who  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the 
infidels,  but  of  whose  subsequent  fate  no  clue  could  be  obtained. 

All  were  greatly  emaciated,  and  their  faces  showed  signs  of 
the  sufferings  they  had  undergone.  The  young  knights  were 
all  familiar  with  their  names,  but  personally  none  had  known 
them,  for  they  had  been  carried  off  two  or  three  months  before 
Gervaise  and  Ralph  Harcourt  had  arrived  at  Rhodes. 

All  three  had  struggled  desperately  to  break  their  chains 
while  the  fight  was  going  on,  and  had,  as  soon  as  the  contest 
was  decided,  risen  to  their  feet  and  shouted  the  battle-cry  of 
the  Order  ;  then,  overcome  by  their  emotions,  they  sank  down 
upon  their  benches,  and  remained  as  if  in  a  stupor  until  the 
knights,  who  had  hurried  first  to  them,  struck  off  their  fetters. 
Then  the  three  men  grasped  each  other's  hands,  while  tears 
streamed  down  their  cheeks. 

"  It  is  no  dream,  comrades,"  one  of  them  said,  in  a  hoarse 
voice.  •"  We  are  free  again.  Let  us  first  return  thanks  to 
God  for  our  release,  and  then  we  can  thank  these  our  brothers. ' ' 

The  three  knights  knelt  at  the  benches  where  they  had 
toiled  and  suffered,  and  hid  their  faces  in  their  hands.  No 
sounds  came  from  their  lips,  but  their  stifled  sobs  and  the 
heaving  of  their  naked  shoulders,  seamed  and  scarred  by  the 
strokes  of  their  taskmasters'  whips,  told  the  young  knights, 
who  stood  unhelmeted  and  silent  around,  how  deep  was  their 
emotion.  Then  they  rose. 


220  A  KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

"  I  am  Fabricius  Caretto,"  one  said ;  "  this  is  Giacomo  Da 
Vinci ;  this  Pietro  Forzi :  all  knight  commanders  of  the  Order, 
and  now  for  six  years  prisoners  in  the  hands  of  these  corsairs. 
Assuredly  no  one  would  know  us,  so  changed  are  we."  He 
looked  round  inquiringly  for  a  familiar  face.  "  Your  com- 
mander must  surely  be  a  comrade  of  ours  ?  ' ' 

"  We  know  all  your  names,"  Gervaisesaid,  coming  forward, 
"  though  none  of  us  reached  the  convent  until  after  your  capt- 
ure. I  have  the  honour  to  command  this  galley.  My  name 
is  Gervaise  Tresham,  and  I  have  for  my  lieutenant  Sir  Ralph 
Harcourt.  All  of  us,  glad  as  we  are  at  the  capture  we  have 
effected  of  these  three  corsairs,  are  still  more  pleased  that  we 
should  have  been  the  means  of  rescuing  three  noble  knights  of 
our  Order  from  captivity.  Now,  I  pray  you  first  of  all  to  accom- 
pany me  on  board  the  galley,  where  we  will  do  all  we  can  to 
make  you  forget  the  sufferings  you  have  gone  through.  After 
you  have  bathed,  and  re-clad  yourselves,  I  will  present  to  you 
the  knights  my  comrades,  amongst  whom  are  seven  of  your 
own  langue.  Three  of  these  I  will  tell  off  to  see  to  your  com- 
fort, for,  as  you  will  understand,  I  have  my  hands  full  indeed 
at  present." 

"  First,  before  all  things,  Sir  Knight,  let  me  express  to  you 
all  our  deep  gratitude  and  our  admiration  of  the  gallant  deed 
that  you  have  accomplished  in  thus,  single-handed,  capturing 
three  vessels  belonging  to  the  fiercest  and  most  dreaded  of  the 
corsairs  of  Tripoli.  God  bless  you  all,  sirs" — and  his  voice 
broke  again — "  for  the  deed  you  have  done,  and  for  bringing 
us  out  of  this  living  hell !  " 

Gervaise  called  to  three  of  the  Italian  knights,  and,  followed 
by  them  and  the  released  captives,  led  the  way  to  the  galley. 
Here  he  left  them  in  charge  of  their  countrymen.  "  Give  them 
each  a  draught  of  old  Cyprus,  and  something  to  eat,"  he  said 
aside  to  one  of  the  knights;  "they  sorely  need  refreshment 
before  aught  else,  for,  as  you  see,  they  are  well-nigh  dazed  with 
this  unlooked-for  change.  I  will  put  out  clothes  enough  for 


THE    FIRST    PRIZES  221 

one  of  them  ;  the  others  you  must  supply  for  the  present  from 
your  stores.  Now  I  must  be  off. ' ' 

There  was  indeed  much  to  be  done.  Four  of  the  knights 
were  told  off  to  attend  upon  the  most  urgent  cases  among  their 
own  wounded.  Only  two  of  their  number  had  been  killed 
outright,  but  there  were  four  serious  cases  among  the  wounded, 
while  eight  or  ten  others  had  received  wounds  that  required 
bandaging  and  attending  to.  As  fast  as  the  slaves'  fetters  were 
struck  off,  food  and  wine  were  given  to  them,  together  with 
such  garments  as  could  be  found  at  the  moment.  Then  the 
bodies  of  the  fallen  pirates  were  thrown  overboard,  while  the 
wounded  were  attended  to,  and  the  released  Christians  were 
divided  equally  between  the  three  prizes.  To  each  of  these  the 
knights  of  one  of  the  langues  were  told  off,  the  seniors  being 
appointed  to  the  command.  There  were  in  all  some  ninety 
Christian  captives  on  board  the  three  ships.  Thus  each  vessel 
had  a  complement  of  seven  knights  and  thirty  Christians,  and 
to  these  were  added  ten  of  the  thirty  Moslems  found  at  the 
oars,  and  fifteen  of  the  pirates  to  whom  quarter  had  been  given. 

It  was  past  noon  before  all  these  arrangements  had  been  made, 
and  during  the  time  so  occupied,  the  ships  lay  idly  side  by  side, 
drifting  slowly  before  the  wind,  the  sails  having  been  lowered  as 
soon  as  the  struggle  was  over.  Up  to  this  time,  the  knights  had 
been  too  busily  engaged  to  think  of  food,  but  they  were  right 
glad  when  they  were  summoned  to  a  meal  on  board  the  galley. 

Gervaise  found  the  three  knights  in  the  cabin,  dressed  in  the 
usual  attire  of  the  Order.  They  presented  a  very  different  ap- 
pearance, indeed,  to  that  which  they  wore  when  he  had  first 
seen  them.  They  had  bathed,  and  combed  their  matted  hair, 
which  was  alone  sufficient  to  transform  them,  but  the  feeling 
that  they  were  once  more  free  men,  and  knights  of  an  honoured 
Order,  had  done  even  more  to  effect  the  change  ;  and  although 
they  looked  thin  and  worn,  the  martial  bearing  had  come  back 
naturally  as  they  donned  their  knightly  robes  and  buckled  on 
swords. 


222  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  I  am  glad  to  see  that  you  are  better,"  Gervaise  said,  as  he 
went  up  to  greet  them.  "  Twenty  years  seem  to  have  dropped 
off  your  shoulders  since  this  morning." 

"  We  are  not  the  same  men,  Sir  Gervaise.  We  were  slaves, 
and  are  now  free.  We  were  Christian  dogs ;  now  we  are  Chris- 
tian knights.  We  were  subject  to  scoffs  and  blows ;  now,  thank 
God,  we  have  swords  to  strike  with,  and  though  as  yet  our  arms 
may  not  have  regained  their  full  strength,  we  could  at  least  bear 
a  share  in  a  fray.  Our  comrades  have  been  telling  us  somewhat 
of  how  this  wonderful  thing  has  come  about,  and  have  been  ex- 
plaining what  at  first  filled  us  with  surprise,  that  a  galley  should 
be  manned  solely  by  young  knights,  of  whom  their  commander 
is  one  of  the  youngest.  We  can  testify,  at  least,  that  had  the 
grand  master  been  himself  in  command,  and  his  crew  com- 
posed of  veteran  knights,  he  could  have  done  no  better. ' ' 

"  We  were  fortunate  in  taking  them  so  much  by  surprise 
that  the  first  of  their  ships  fell  into  our  hands  before  her  con- 
sorts could  come  to  her  assistance  ;  and  her  guns  did  us  good 
service  in  our  struggle  with  the  others. ' ' 

11  The  matter  was  well  arranged,  as  well  as  gallantly  fought," 
one  of  the  other  knights  said.  "  Had  you  first  fallen  foul  of 
the  chiefs  galley,  it  would  have  gone  hard  with  you,  for  his 
crew  were  so  strong  that  you  could  scarce  have  overcome  them 
before  the  other  two  vessels  came  up  to  his  assistance." 

"  Now  let  us  to  our  meal,"  Gervaise  said. 

The  three  knights  were  placed  at  the  head  of  the  table  by 
him,  and  it  was  pleasant  to  see  how  they  enjoyed  their  food. 

"  I  can  scarce  persuade  myself  that  I  am  not  dreaming," 
Caretto  said.  "  Sometimes,  when  lying  at  night,  wet  through 
with  the  damp  air,  I  have  wondered  to  myself  whether  I  could 
ever  have  lived  thus,  and  whether  I  should  ever  exchange  my 
hard  bread-and-water  for  what  seemed  to  me  fabulous  luxuries, 
though  at  the  time  one  had  taken  them  as  a  matter  of  course. 
You  cannot  tell  how  strange  it  feels  to  me  to  come  back  to  the 
old  life  again." 


THE    FIRST    PRIZES  223 

"  You  will  soon  be  accustomed  to  it,"  Gervaise  said,  with  a 
smile,  "and  then  you  will  look  upon  your  captivity  as  a 
dream,  just  as  you  then  regarded  your  past  life." 

"I  suppose,  Sir  Gervaise,"  Pietro  Forzi  said,  "that  you 
will  sail  direct  for  Rhodes  with  your  prizes?  " 

"No  indeed,"  Gervaise  replied.  "At  the  same  time  that 
we  learned,  from  a  dying  man  left  on  board  the  ship  the  pirates 
captured  yesterday,  of  the  course  they  had  taken,  and  were  so 
enabled  to  follow  them,  we  also  learned  that  they  were  on  their 
way  to  join  a  corsair  fleet  that  was  collecting  at  some  point  on 
the  eastern  side  of  Sardinia,  with  the  intention  of  sweeping  the 
coast  of  Italy.  It  was  this,  rather  than  the  capture  of  these 
three  vessels,  that  induced  us  to  disobey  the  general  instruc- 
tions we  had  been  given  to  cruise  along  the  northern  coast  of 
Africa,  and  determined  us  to  push  north  to  give  warning  along 
the  coast  from  Naples  to  Genoa  of  the  danger  that  threatened, 
and,  if  possible,  to  enable  Genoa  to  fit  out  her  galleys  to  en- 
counter the  corsairs.  That  duty  has  still  to  be  fulfilled, 
though  I  fear  that  Genoa  will  be  able  to  do  little,  for  of  late 
she  has  been  engaged  in  a  long  civil  struggle  between  her  great 
families,  and  has  taken  but  a  small  part  in  maritime  affairs. 
However,  we  can  at  least  warn  her,  as  well  as  Naples,  Pisa, 
and  other  towns,  and  may  possibly  find  some  opportunity  for 
ourselves  striking  another  blow  against  the  pirates." 

"  If  so,  certainly  we  shall  be  glad  to  accompany  you,  if  you 
will  allow  us  to  serve  under  you  ;  for  nothing  would  please  us 
so  much  as  the  opportunity  of  paying  off  a  small  share  of  the 
vengeance  we  owe  them.  But  of  course,  if  you  would  rather, 
we  will  sail  for  Rhodes  in  the  prizes." 

"  I  am  not  thinking  of  sending  them  to  Rhodes  at  present," 
Gervaise  said.  "  It  seems  to  me  that  we  may  be  able,  in  some 
way,  to  utilise  them  to  advantage.  They  have  their  sails,  and 
rowers  for  the  oars.  There  will  be,  in  each,  besides  seven 
knights  of  the  Order,  thirty  men  who,  like  yourselves,  must  feel 
willing  to  strike  a  blow  at  their  late  oppressors.  I  need  hardly 


224  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

say  that  I  shall  be  glad  indeed  to  have  the  company  and  aid  of 
three  such  well-known  knights  of  the  Order,  and  would,  could 
I  do  so,  gladly  resign  my  command  into  your  experienced 
hands.  But  this  I  cannot  do,  and,  anticipating  that  you  would 
be  willing  to  join  us  in  this  expedition,  I  have  been  thinking 
how  I  could  best  utilise  your  aid.  I  have  thought  that,  if  you 
would  accept  the  positions,  I  would  appoint  one  of  you  to  each 
of  the  prizes,  to  act,  not  as  its  commander,  but  as  the  leader 
of  the  band  of  released  captives.  Most  of  them  are  sailors,  of 
course,  and  with  them  you  could  work  the  guns  and  give  ef- 
fective aid  to  the  little  party  of  knights  in  any  actual  fight." 

The  three  knights  all  exclaimed  that  they  would  gladly 
accept  the  posts  he  offered  them. 

"The  idea  is  a  capital  one,  Sir  Gervaise;  and,  as  long  as 
it  does  not  come  to  close  fighting,  the  three  ships  should  be 
able  to  render  efficient  aid  to  your  galley  in  any  encounter. 
They  will  be,  at  any  rate,  a  match  for  their  own  number  of 
pirate  ships,"  Caretto  said. 

As  soon  as  the  meal  concluded,  the  Moslem  captives  were 
questioned  one  by  one  as  to  the  rendezvous  at  which  the  pirate 
fleet  was  to  assemble ;  all,  however,  protested  that  the  place 
was  known  only  to  the  three  commanders,  all  of  whom  had 
fallen  in  the  fight. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

THE   CORSAIR   FLEET 

AN  hour  later  all  was  ready  for  a  start.  The  knights  of  the 
langues  of  France,  Germany,  and  Spain  went  on  board 
their  respective  ships,  as  did  the  three  parties  of  released  cap- 
tives, with  the  knights  who  were  to  command  them,  while  the 
rowers  took  their  seats  on  the  benches,  shackled  with  the  chains 
that  had  recently  held  the  Christians.  The  wind  was  from  the 


THE    CORSAIR    FLEET  225 

south,  and  with  sails  and  oars  the  prizes  were  able  to  keep 
fairly  abreast  of  the  galley.  With  a  few  short  intervals  of  rest, 
the  slaves  continued  their  work  all  night,  until,  shortly  before 
daybreak,  land  was  seen  ahead,  and  the  pilot  at  once  pro- 
nounced it  to  be  Cape  Carbonara. 

"  A  good  landfall,  Gervaise,"  Ralph  said.  "The  pilot  has 
done  right  well.  I  suppose  you  mean  to  anchor  when  you  get 
there?" 

"  Certainly,  Ralph.  The  slaves  will  have  rowed  nearly 
eighteen  hours,  with  only  two  hours'  rest.  They  must  have 
some  hours,  at  least,  of  sleep  before  we  go  on.  As  you  and  I 
have  been  up  all  night,  we  will  turn  in  also.  We  will  send  a 
boat  ashore  to  try  and  find  out  from  the  natives  they  may  come 
across  whether  any  vessels,  bearing  the  appearance  of  Moorish 
corsairs,  have  been  seen  passing  up  the  coast,  and  also  to  find 
out  what  bays  and  inlets  there  are  where  they  would  be  likely 
to  anchor.  Some  of  the  Italian  knights  had  best  go  with  the 
boat,  for  though  I  believe  these  people  speak  a  different  dialect 
to  those  of  the  mainland,  they  would  have  more  chance  of  un- 
derstanding them  than  any  of  the  others." 

The  sun  had  risen  when  the  little  fleet  came  to  an  anchor  close 
to  the  cape.  A  boat  was  at  once  prepared  to  go  ashore,  and 
Gervaise  begged  Fabricius  Caretto,  the  senior  of  the  rescued 
Italian  knights,  to  endeavour  to  find  out  whether  a  swift -sailing 
craft  of  some  kind  could  be  hired.  If  so,  he  was  to  secure 
her  on  any  terms,  and  come  off  in  her  at  once  to  the  galley. 

Gervaise  had  already  talked  the  matter  over  with  Ralph,  and 
they  agreed  that  a  strongly-manned  craft  of  this  kind  would 
go  faster  than  any  of  those  they  had  taken,  and  that,  moreover, 
it  would  be  a  pity  to  weaken  their  force  by  sending  one  of  the 
prizes  away.  Having  seen  them  off,  Gervaise  retired  to  the 
cabin  and  threw  himself  down  for  a  short  sleep,  leaving  the 
knights  who  had  been  off  watch  during  the  night,  to  see  that 
all  went  well.  In  two  hours  he  was  roused.  A  native  craft 
had  come  alongside  with  Sir  Fabricius  Caretto. 


226  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

"  I  think  she  is  just  the  craft  for  us,"  the  knight  said,  as 
Gervaise  came  on  deck.  "  She  belongs  to  a  large  fishing  vil- 
lage just  round  the  point  to  the  left.  There  were  several 
boats  there,  but  the  villagers  all  said  that  this  was  the  speediest 
vessel  anywhere  along  the  coast.  She  belongs  to  two  broth- 
ers, who,  with  four  men,  constitute  her  regular  crew ;  but  I 
have  arranged  for  twelve  others  to  go  in  her,  in  order  that 
they  may  row  her  along  at  a  good  pace  if  the  wind  falls  light. ' ' 

' '  Are  your  companions  come  off  yet  ?  ' ' 

"  No  ;  but  we  can  hoist  a  flag  for  their  recall." 

"  Do  so.  I  shall  be  greatly  obliged  if  you  will  undertake 
this  mission  to  the  seaports.  It  needs  one  of  name  and  rank 
to  speak  with  the  nobles  and  officials  authoritatively." 

"  I  will  gladly  do  so,  Sir  Gervaise.  Give  me  your  instruc- 
tions, and  you  can  rely  upon  my  carrying  them  out." 

"  I  thank  you  greatly,  Sir  Fabricius,  and  shall  be  glad  if  you 
will  take  with  you  any  two  of  the  knights  you  may  select.  I 
have  to  write  letters  for  you  to  deliver  to  the  authorities  at 
Naples,  Pisa,  and  Genoa.  I  shall  write  but  briefly,  and  leave 
you  to  explain  matters  more  fully.  I  shall  merely  say  that  I 
have  intelligence  of  the  arrival  here  of  a  fleet  of  Moorish  cor- 
sairs, of  whose  strength  I  am  ignorant,  but  that  assuredly  their 
intention  is  to  make  a  raid  on  the  commerce  of  the  coast,  and 
perhaps  to  land  at  unprotected  places.  At  Ostia,  after  warn- 
ing the  authorities  to  send  orders  along  the  coast  for  the  in- 
habitants to  be  on  their  guard,  pray  them  to  carry  word  at 
once  to  Rome,  and  request  his  Holiness  the  Pope  to  order 
some  armed  galleys  to  put  to  sea  as  soon  as  possible.  Beg 
them  at  Naples  and  Pisa  to  do  the  same  thing.  But  of  course 
it  is  from  Genoa  that  we  must  hope  for  the  most  assistance. 

"  In  each  place  you  will,  if  possible,  see  the  syndic  himself, 
and  such  of  his  council  as  can  be  got  quickly  together.  The 
moment  you  have  done  all  you  can  at  Genoa  sail  for  the  Isl- 
and of  Madalena,  which  lies  off  the  north-eastern  point  of  the 
island.  There  you  will  either  find  us,  or  a  boat  with  a  mes- 


THE    CORSAIR    FLEET  227 

sage  where  to  direct  your  course.  I  think  perhaps  it  will  be 
best  to  omit  Naples — it  will  save  you  fully  a  day,  if  not  two, 
to  do  so.  Pray  them  at  Ostia  to  send  off  news  down  the 
coast,  or  to  request  the  papal  authorities  to  despatch  mounted 
messengers.  'Tis  likely  that,  at  first,  at  any  rate,  the  corsairs 
will  try  the  narrower  waters  to  the  north.  From  here  to 
Ostia  is  nigh  two  hundred  miles,  and  if  the  wind  is  brisk  you 
may  arrive  there  to-morrow  afternoon,  and  start  again  at 
night,  arriving  at  Pisa  before  noon  on  the  following  day; 
while,  allowing  for  four  or  five  hours  to  ascend  the  river  there, 
you  may  be  at  Genoa  next  morning. 

"  Three  hours  should  suffice  to  gather  from  the  authorities 
what  force  they  can  despatch,  and  as  soon  as  you  have  learned 
this,  embark  again  and  sail  south.  You  may  reach  Madalena 
in  two  days.  Thus,  at  the  earliest,  it  must  be  from  six  to 
seven  days  before  you  can  bring  us  the  news  there ;  if  you 
meet  with  calms  or  foul  winds  you  may  be  well-nigh  double 
that  time.  If  at  Ostia  you  can  get  a  faster  craft  than  this,  hire 
it,  or  take  a  relay  of  fresh  rowers.  I  will  furnish  you  with 
means  when  I  give  you  the  letters." 

In  less  than  half  an  hour  Gervaise  was  on  deck  again.  The 
boat  had  returned  with  the  other  Italian  knights.  An  ample 
store  of  provisions  had  been  placed  on  board  the  Sperondra, 
both  for  the  crew  and  for  the  three  knights,  and,  without  a 
minute's  delay,  these  took  their  places  on  board,  the  great  sails 
were  hoisted,  and  the  craft  glided  rapidly  away. 

"  The  villagers  spoke  truly  as  to  her  speed,"  Ralph  said,  as 
they  looked  after  her.  "Even  with  this  light  wind,  she  is 
running  fully  six  miles  an  hour,  and  as,  by  the  look  of  the 
sky,  there  will  be  more  of  it  soon,  she  will  make  the  run  to 
Ostia  well  within  the  time  we  calculated." 

Gervaise  now  questioned  the  other  Italian  knights  as  to 
what  information  they  had  gained. 

They  said  the  peasants  had  told  them  that  several  strange 
craft,  using  both  oars  and  sails,  had  been  noticed  passing 


228  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

northwards,  and  that  so  strong  was  the  opinion  that  these  were 
either  Algerines  or  Tunisians  that,  for  the  last  three  or  four 
days,  none  of  the  fishing  craft  had  Ventured  to  put  to  sea. 
They  were  able  to  tell  but  little  as  to  the  bays  along  the  coast- 
line, which  they  described  as  very  rugged  and  precipitous. 
Five  or  six  little  streams  ran,  they  knew,  down  from  the  moun- 
tains. They  thought  the  most  likely  places  for  corsairs  to 
rendezvous  would  be  in  a  deep  indentation  north  of  Cape  Bel- 
lavista,  or  behind  Cape  Comino.  If  not  at  these  places,  they 
might  meet  in  the  great  bay  at  whose  entrance  stands  Tavolara 
Island,  and  that  beyond,  there  were  several  deep  inlets  on  the 
north-eastern  coast  of  the  Island. 

Gervaise  had  a  consultation  with  Ralph. 

"  The  first  thing  is  to  find  out  where  these  corsairs  have 
their  meeting-place,  Ralph ;  and  this  must  be  done  without 
their  catching  sight  of  the  galley  or  of  the  prizes,  which  some 
of  them  would  be  sure  to  recognise. ' ' 

Ralph  nodded. 

"  It  is  a  difficult  question,  Gervaise.  Of  course,  if  we  had  a 
boat  speedy  enough  to  row  away  from  the  corsairs  it  would  be 
easy  enough  ;  but  with  wind  and  oars  they  go  so  fast  that  no 
boat  could  escape  them. ' ' 

"  That  is  quite  certain,  Ralph;  and  therefore,  if  it  is  done 
by  a  boat,  it  must  be  by  one  so  small  and  insignificant  that 
they  would  pay  but  little  attention  to  it  if  they  caught  sight  of 
it.  My  idea  is  that  we  should  take  our  own  little  boat,  which 
is  a  fast  one,  paint  it  black,  to  give  it  the  appearance  of  a 
fisherman's  boat,  and  hire  a  couple  of  good  rowers  from  the 
village.  This,  with  one  knight  dressed  as  a  fisherman,  should 
go  ahead  of  us,  and  explore  every  inlet  where  ships  could  be 
sheltered.  We  would  follow  ten  miles  behind.  When  we  get 
near  the  places  where  the  natives  think  the  fleet  is  likely  to  be, 
the  boat  must  go  on  at  night,  while  we  anchor.  In  that  way 
they  ought  to  be  able  to  discover  the  corsairs,  while  themselves 
unseen,  and  to  gain  some  idea  of  their  numbers  and  the 


THE   CORSAIR   FLEET  229 

position  in  which  they  are  anchored,  and  bring  us  back 
news." 

"  Shall  I  go  myself,  Gervaise  ?  " 

"  I  could  not  spare  you,  Ralph.  The  risk  of  capture  does 
not  seem  to  me  to  be  great,  but  there  certainly  is  a  risk,  and  I 
dare  not  part  with  you.  It  had  better  be  an  Italian,  because 
there  will  doubtless  be  an  opportunity  of  landing  at  villages 
and  questioning  the  inhabitants,  therefore  we  will  send  Fosco. 
If  there  are  some  eight  or  ten  corsairs  gathered  in  any  of 
these  bays  the  news  is  sure  to  travel  along  the  shore,  and  we 
may  get  some  tidings  in  that  way.  The  first  thing  is  to  send 
off  to  the  village  again  to  fetch  two  young  fishermen  ;  they 
must  be  active  fellows,  strong,  and  possessed  of  some  courage. 
I  will  ask  da  Vinci  to  go  himself  and  select  them.  While  he 
is  away  we  will  paint  our  boat  black,  and  make  ready  for  her 
to  start  at  once  ;  the  sooner  she  is  off  the  better. ' ' 

The  Italian  knight  at  once  undertook  the  mission,  and 
started  for  the  shore.  Fosco,  who  had  been  chosen  principal- 
ly because  he  was  light  of  frame,  as  well  as  very  shrewd  and  in- 
telligent, was  then  called  up,  and  his  mission  explained  to 
him.  He  was  delighted  at  having  been  selected.  Gervaise 
took  him  down  to  the  cabin,  and  they  consulted  the  maps 
with  which  the  galley  was  furnished. 

"  You  will  row  on  to  Muravera;  it  is  some  twenty  miles 
from  here.v  You  see,  the  village  lies  at  the  mouth  of  a  river. 
As  soon  as  you  arrive  there,  you  will  land  and  find  out  whether 
there  is  any  report  of  Moorish  pirates  having  been  seen  along 
the  coast.  We  shall  be  there  this  evening,  and  you  will  come 
on  board  and  report.  Next  day  you  will  get  to  Lunasei,  which 
is  about  five  miles  on  this  side  of  Cape  Bellavista,  and  they 
\villcertainly  know  there  if  the  pirates  are  lying  behind  the 
cape.  If  they  are  so,  you  will  row  back  to  meet  us  ;  if  they 
are  not,  you  will  remain  there  until  we  come  up  in  the  even- 
ing. Remember  that,  should  you  on  either  day  be  seen  and 
chased,  and  you  find  they  are  overtaking  you,  you  will  make 


230  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

for  the  shore,  land,  and  conceal  yourselves.  We  shall  keep 
along  near  the  coast,  and  as  we  pass  you  can  come  down  to 
the  water's  edge  and  signal  to  us  to  take  you  off.  Now  you 
had  better  disguise  yourself,  so  as  to  be  in  readiness  to  start  as 
soon  as  da  Vinci  comes  off  with  the  men.  You  will  only  need 
to  take  a  small  stock  of  provisions,  as  each  night  you  can  re- 
plenish them  here." 

An  hour  later  da  Vinci  came  off  with  two  stalwart  young 
fishermen.  The  little  boat  had  already  been  painted,  and  it 
was  lowered  at  once ;  Fosco  stepped  into  it,  and  started. 

Two  hours  later  the  prizes  got  up  sail,  and,  accompanied  by 
the  galley,  coasted  quietly  along  the  shore,  arriving,  late  in  the 
afternoon,  at  Muravera.  Fosco  at  once  came  on  board. 

"  There  is  no  news  here  beyond  that  which  we  gained  this 
morning,  Sir  Gervaise,"  he  said.  "  Strange  ships  have  cer- 
tainly been  seen  sailing  north,  but  they  did  not  approach  the 
coast." 

A  similar  report  was  given  at  Lunasei ;  there  were  certainly 
no  corsairs  lying  behind  Cape  Bellavista,  or  news  would  assur- 
edly have  reached  the  village.  At  Orosei,  next  day,  the  report 
was  the  same  ;  there  were  no  strange  ships  at  Cape  Comino. 
They  had  been  warned  overnight  that  the  coast  beyond  the  cape 
was  so  precipitous,  that  there  would  be  no  villages  at  which  to 
make  inquiries,  and  arranged  with  Fosco  that  the  ships  should 
anchor  north  of  the  cape,  and  that  he  should  go  on  at  once  to 
inspect  the  next  bay.  If  he  found  ships  there,  he  was  to  return 
at  once ;  if  not,  he  was,  at  daybreak,  to  land  at  one  of  the  vil- 
lages in  the  bay,  and  to  make  inquiries. 

No  news  was  brought  in  by  him  during  the  night. 

"It  is  evident  the  pirates  are  not  in  the  bay,  Gervaise," 
Ralph  said,  as  they  came  on  deck  at  daybreak. 

"  Yes  ;  and  I  am  glad  of  it.  It  is  a  large  bay,  and  if  the 
Genoese  send  half-a-dozen  galleys,  some  of  the  pirates  might 
still  escape,  while  the  next  bays  are  deeper  and  narrower,  and 
it  would  be  more  easy  to  entrap  them  all.  I  have  all  along 


THE   CORSAIR   FLEET  231 

thought  it  most  probable  that  they  would  rendezvous  there. 
The  maps  show  no  villages  for  many  miles  round,  and  they 
might  lie  .there  for  weeks  without  so  much  as  a  shepherd  getting 
sight  of  them  from  the  cliffs.  Moreover,  it  is  the  nearest  point 
for  cutting  off  ships  coming  down  between  Corsica  and  the 
mainland,  and  they  can,  besides,  snap  up  those  proceeding 
from  the  south  to  Marseilles,  as  these,  for  the  most  part,  pass 
between  Sardinia  and  Corsica." 

At  eight  o'clock  the  boat  was  seen  coming  round  the  point. 

"Any  news,  Fosco  ?  "  Gervaise  asked,  as  it  approached  the 
galley. 

"  None,  Sir  Gervaise.  They  have  heard  nothing  of  pirates, 
nor  seen  anything  of  them." 

Exclamations  of  disappointment  broke  from  the  knights. 

"  That  makes  it  all  the  more  likely,"  Gervaise  said,  "  that 
they  are  lying  in  one  of  the  inlets  to  the  north.  You  see, 
lower  down  they  kept  comparatively  close  to  the  shore,  being 
careless  who  might  notice  them ;  but  as  they  approached  their 
rendezvous,  they  would  be  more  careful,  and  might  either  pass 
along  at  night,  or  keep  far  out.  If  they  had  not  been  anxious 
to  conceal  their  near  presence,  they  would  have  been  likely  to 
put  into  this  bay  in  search  of  plunder  and  captives ;  for  Tempe, 
one  of  the  largest  of  the  Sardinian  towns,  lies  but  a  short  dis- 
tance away,  and  there  must  be  a  considerable  amount  of 
traffic." 

"  There  are  four  or  five  small  craft  lying  there,"  Fosco, 
who  had  by  this  time  stepped  on  board,  put  in,  "  and  a  con- 
siderable number  of  fishing  boats.  When  I  came  upon  the 
ships  in  the  dark,  I  thought  at  first  that  I  had  lighted  on  the 
pirates,  but  on  letting  the  boat  drift  closely  by  them  I  soon 
saw  they  were  not  corsair  galleys." 

"  Shall  we  get  up  anchor  and  go  into  the  bay?  "  Ralph 
asked. 

"It  were  safer  not  to  do  so,  Ralph.  Possibly  one  of  the 
craft  lying  there  might  be  presently  captured  by  them,  and 


232  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

they  might  learn  from  her  crew  of  the  presence  of  a  galley  of 
the  Order  there.  Therefore  I  think  it  best  to  remain  where 
we  are  till  nightfall,  and  then  to  proceed  and  anchor  on  the 
north  side  of  the  Island  of  Madalena,  if  we  can  find  a  sheltered 
cove  where  we  could  not  be  seen  either  from  the  land  or  by 
passing  ships." 

During  the  day  there  was  a  good  deal  of  discussion  among 
the  knights  as  to  whether  the  corsairs  might  not  already  have 
sailed  away.  It  was  evident  that  if  all  their  ships  had  arrived, 
there  would  be  no  motive  for  delay.  Three  ships  they  knew 
would  never  join  them,  and  others  might  have  been  detained, 
from  some  cause  or  another.  There  could  be  no  doubt  that  the 
pirates  had  already  ample  force  for  capturing  as  many  merchant 
vessels  as  they  might  come  across.  But  it  might  be  intended 
to  carry  out  some  more  daring  project — to  sack  and  burn 
towns  along  the  coast,  carry  off  the  leading  people  for  ransom, 
and  fill  the  vessels  with  slaves — the  attack  being  made  simul- 
taneously on  several  unprotected  towns.  A  vast  amount  of 
plunder  could  thus  be  reaped,  together  with  captives  of  even 
greater  money  value.  Were  this  their  plan,  they  would 
doubtless  delay  until  all  those  who  had  promised  to  join  in  the 
expedition  had  arrived.  The  balance  of  opinion,  then,  was 
that  the  corsairs  were  still  in  hiding. 

By  daybreak  next  morning  they  were  moored  in  a  sheltered 
little  bay  to  the  north  of  Madalena,  the  galley  lying  inside 
the  prizes,  so  as  tor  be  concealed  as  much  as  possible  from  view 
of  any  craft  that  might  happen  to  pass  the  mouth  of  the  bay. 
Fosco  started  as  soon  as  darkness  fell  in  the  evening,  and  re- 
turned early  in  the  morning. 

"They  are  there,"  he  shouted,  as  he  neared  the  galley, 
"  hidden  in  a  deep  inlet  that  runs  into  one  of  the  narrow  bays. ' ' 

"  How  many  are  there  of  them  ?  " 

"  Seventeen  or  eighteen,  I  could  not  say  which.  They  are 
all  moored  side  by  side." 

By  this  time  Fosco' s  boat  had  reached  the  galley. 


THE   CORSAIR   FLEET  233 

"  You  have  done  well  indeed,"  Gervaise  said,  as  the  young 
knight  ascended  to  the  poop.  "  Now  give  us  a  full  account  of 
what  you  have  seen." 

"  As  you  know,  Sir  Gervaise,  the  bay  opposite  this  island 
splits  up  into  two,  running  a  long  way  inland,  like  the  fangs  of 
a  great  tooth.  I  had,  of  course,  no  difficulty  in  finding  the 
entrance  to  the  bay  itself,  as  it  is  but  a  short  distance  across 
the  strait.  I  steered  first  for  the  left-hand  shore,  and  kept 
close  along  under  the  shadow  of  the  cliffs,  which,  in  many 
cases,  rise  almost  straight  out  from  the  water.  We  rowed  very 
quietly,  fearing  to  run  against  a  rock  ;  for  although  it  was 
light  enough  to  see  across  the  water,  and  to  make  out  any 
craft  that  might  be  anchored  there,  it  was  very  dark  along  the 
foot  of  the  cliffs.  There  was  no  need  for  haste,  as  I  knew  I 
had  plenty  of  time  to  explore  both  arms  of  the  bay,  and  to  be 
back  here  before  day  began  to  break. 

"  We  rowed  up  to  the  end  of  the  inlet,  and  then,  having 
assured  ourselves  that  it  was  empty,  came  down  the  other  side, 
and  turned  up  the  western  arm.  We  had  got  some  distance 
along  when  I  fancied  I  heard  voices,  and  so  let  the  boat  drift 
along,  only  dipping  the  oars  in  the  water  occasionally.  I 
could  make  out  no  signs  whatever  of  the  corsairs,  when  sud- 
denly we  came  upon  a  break  in  the  cliffs.  It  was  only  some 
fifty  yards  across,  and  here  a  creek  came  in  at  right  angles  to 
the  shore.  I  could  have  given  a  shout  of  pleasure  as  I  looked 
up  it,  for  there  a  score  of  lights  were  burning  above  a  dark 
mass,  and  we  could  hear  the  sound  of  talking  and  laughter.  It 
was  but  a  glimpse  I  caught,  for  the  men  at  once  backed  water, 
and  we  were  soon  round  the  corner  again. 

"  Up  till  then  the  fishermen  had  been  ready  enough  to  go 
where  I  wanted,  but  the  sight  of  that  clump  of  galleys  regu- 
larly scared  them,  and  they  wanted  to  row  straight  away;  but 
of  course  I  pointed  out  to  them  that  they  had  taken  pay  to  do 
this  thing,  and  that  they  had  to  do  it.  They  said  that  if 
caught  they  would  be  either  killed  or  made  slaves  of,  and  I 


234  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

could  not  contradict  them,  but  said  that,  in  the  first  place,  as 
I  was  ready  to  run  the  risk,  there  was  no  reason  why  they 
shouldn't  do  so,  and  in  the  second,  there  was  no  chance  what- 
ever of  their  being  taken,  as,  if  discovered,  we  should  get  so 
long  a  start  that  we  could  either  escape  them  altogether  or  run 
the  boat  ashore  at  some  point  where  the  trees  came  down  to 
the  water's  edge,  carry  the  boat  up  and  hide  it,  and  then 
move  up  into  the  hills  until  the  corsairs  had  gone. 

"  We  waited  there  three  or  four  hours,  looking  round  the 
point  occasionally.  At  the  end  of  that  time  all  was  quiet.  Two 
or  three  of  the  lanterns  still  burned,  but  there  was  no  sign  of  life 
or  movement  on  their  decks.  After  waiting  another  half-hour 
to  ensure  the  crews  being  asleep,  we  rowed  quietly  up  the  creek, 
keeping  within  an  oar's  length  of  the  rocks.  There  was  not 
much  to  see ;  the  galleys  lay  two  abreast,  and  as  there  was  no 
space  between  them,  I  supposed  the  whole  were  lashed  together. 
There  were  eight  of  them  on  the  side  we  went  along,  but  I  think 
there  were  only  seven  on  the  other  side.  As  I  thought  it  did 
not  much  matter  whether  there  were  fifteen  or  sixteen,  and  as 
the  men  were  in  a  state  of  horrible  fright,  we  turned  and  went 
back  again,  and  I  own  I  felt  very  glad  myself  when  we  got 
round  the  point  without  an  alarm  being  given.  We  came  quiet- 
ly out,  and  it  was  fortunate  we  did  so,  for  we  had  not  gone  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  when  we  heard  the  sound  of  oars,  and,  lying 
silently  under  the  cliff,  we  saw  two  large  galleys  row  past  us." 

"  It  is  a  strong  force,  Gervaise,"  Ralph  said,  as  they  paced 
up  and  down  the  poop  together.  "  Probably  in  each  of  those 
galleys  are  eighty  or  a  hundred  men,  in  addition  to  the  row- 
ers. It  is  evident  that  unless  Genoa  sends  us  help  we  shall 
not  be  able  to  interfere  with  their  plans." 

"  I  don't  know,  Ralph.  I  think  we  may  injure  them  sorely, 
though  we  might  not  be  able  to  defeat  them  altogether.  I 
want  you  to-night  to  take  one  of  the  prizes,  and  row  round  to 
the  bay  we  passed,  and  there  to  buy  three  coasting  vessels  and 
six  or  eight  fishing-boats.  Get  as  much  pitch,  oil,  and  other 


THE   CORSAIR   FLEET  235 

combustibles,  as  you  can  purchase  in  the  villages  on  the  shore. 
If  you  can  engage  a  score  of  fishermen  to  man  them,  all  the 
better.  My  idea  is  that  if  Caretto  returns  with  news  that  the 
Genoese  have  no  galleys  ready  for  sea,  we  must  do  what  we 
can  to  injure  these  corsairs.  If  we  smear  these  craft  you  are 
going  to  fetch  with  pitch  and  oil,  and  fill  the  holds  with  com- 
bustibles, and  so  turn  them  into  fire-ships,  we  may  at  least  do 
the  pirates  a  tremendous  lot  of  harm.  When  we  get  to  the 
mouth  of  this  inlet,  we  could  have  the  fire-ships  rowed  in  by 
three  or  four  men  in  each,  they  having  a  boat  behind  in  which 
to  escape  as  soon  as  the  boats  are  lighted.  The  sight  of  a  dozen 
craft  coming  down  on  them  in  flames  would  cause  a  terrific 
panic,  for,  moored  closely  together,  as  they  are,  if  one  took 
fire  there  would  be  little  chance  of  the  others  escaping.  Of 
course,  we  should  add  to  the  confusion  by  opening  a  fire  with 
all  our  guns,  and  could  hope  to  capture  some  at  least  of  them 
as  they  tried  to  make  their  way  out. ' ' 

"  It  is  a  grand  idea,  Gervaise ;  a  splendid  idea  !  It  would 
be  a  terrific  blow  to  the  Moors,  and  would  make  the  sea  safe 
from  them  for  a  long  time. ' ' 

"  When  you  buy  the  other  things,  Ralph,  get  a  quantity  of 
black  cloth — it  matters  not  how  coarse,  or  of  what  material ; 
and  also  some  white.  As  soon  as  you  come  back  with  it,  all 
hands  shall  set  to  work  to  make  the  stuff  up  into  mantles  of 
the  Order,  with  the  white  cross.  We  will  put  these  on  to  the 
Christians  in  the  prizes,  and  the  Moors  will  suppose  that  they 
are  attacked  by  four  of  the  galleys  of  the  Order.  If  you  can 
get  some  more  arms  and  some  iron  headpieces,  all  the  better." 

"  I  will  do  what  I  can,  Gervaise ;  the  arms  will  certainly  be 
wanted,,  for  those  we  found  on  the  decks  were  sufficient  only 
to  arm  half  the  Christians.  As  to  the  steel  caps,  that  will  not 
matter  so  much,  as  in  the  darkness  and  confusion  the  sight  of 
the  mantles  will  be  quite  enough  to  convince  the  corsairs 
that  we  are  all  knights  of  the  Order.  By  the  way,  Gervaise, 
we  have  not  yet  looked  into  the  holds  of  the  prizes. 


236  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  That  is  so,  Ralph  ;  we  knew,  of  course,  that  as  the  ships 
had  but  just  started  we  should  find  nothing  in  them  save  the 
cargo  of  that  unfortunate  craft  they  captured." 

On  searching  they  found,  as  they  had  expected,  that  the 
cargo  of  the  captured  ship  had  been  of  no  great  value.  It 
consisted  of  wine,  olive  oil,  and  grain.  These  were  all  useful, 
for  the  number  of  mouths  to  be  fed  was  considerable,  and 
heavy  inroads  had  already  been  made  on  the  stores  of  the  gal- 
ley. The  rowers  of  the  four  vessels  were  at  once  set  to  work 
to  crush  the  grain  between  flat  stones  brought  from  the  shore, 
and  an  ample  supply  of  coarse  flour  for  their  use  for  at  least  a 
fortnight  was  obtained  before  sunset. 

As  soon  as  darkness  fell,  Ralph  and  two  of  the  French 
knights  started  in  one  of  the  prizes.  Late  on  the  following 
afternoon  a  sail  was  seen  coming  from  the  north,  and  before 
the  sun  set  they  were  able  to  make  her  out  to  be  the  craft  in 
which  Caretto  had  sailed.  The  anchor  of  the  galley  was  at 
once  got  up,  and  she  rowed  out  to  meet  the  boat  and  conduct 
her  into  the  little  bay.  It  was  almost  dark  when  they  came 
within  hailing  distance. 

"  What  news  do  you  bring,  Sir  Fabricius?  " 

"  Bad  news,  I  regret  to  say.  I  do  not  think  that  Genoa 
will  be  able  to  send  out  any  galleys  for  at  least  a  fortnight. 
There  have  been  civil  dissensions,  and  fighting  between  rival 
factions,  and  in  consequence  her  ships  are  all  dismantled  and 
laid  up.  Crews  will  have  to  be  collected  for  them,  repairs  exe- 
cuted, and  officers  chosen  ;  a  fortnight  will  be  the  earliest  time 
in  which  they  can  be  here.  Pisa  has  no  war-galleys,  and  unless 
the  Pope  sends  some  out  directly  he  gets  the  news,  the  corsairs 
will  have  it  their  own  way.  Have  you  discovered  them  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  they  lie  but  a  few  miles  from  here.  There  were 
fifteen  or  sixteen  of  them  two  days  ago,  and  two  others  joined 
them  that  night.  You  have  lost  no  time  indeed.  We  had 
scarce  begun  to  expect  you,  Sir  Fabricius,"  he  added,  as  the 
knight  and  his  two  comrades  stepped  on  board. 


THE    CORSAIR    FLEET  237 

"  I  have  done  my  best,"  the  knight  said  angrily.  "  But  I 
am  in  a  rage  with  my  ill  success.  All  I  have  accomplished  is 
that  no  merchant  vessels  will  put  to  sea  at  present.  At  Ostia 
they  would  only  send  off  a  message  to  Rome,  to  ask  for  or- 
ders. At  Pisa  the  authorities  at  first  treated  my  story  as  a 
fiction,  and,  I  believe,  took  me  for  an  impostor ;  but  on  the 
news  spreading,  some  knights  came  forward  and  recognised 
me.  Then  we  had  a  meeting  of  the  council.  All  talked, 
wrangled,  and  protested.  They  said  that  it  was  absurd  to 
suppose  that  they  could,  at  a  moment's  notice,  fit  out  ships  to 
cope  with  a  fleet  of  corsairs  ;  and  their  sole  idea  was  to  man 
the  forts,  and  to  repel  an  attack.  However,  mounted  messen- 
gers were  sent  off  at  once,  up  and  down  the  coast,  to  give 
warning  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  towns  to  put  themselves  into 
a  posture  of  defence,  and  to  the  villagers  to  fly  with  their 
wives  and  families  into  the  interior  as  soon  as  they  saw  galleys 
of  doubtful  appearance  approaching.  I  was  there  but  four 
hours,  and  then  started  for  Genoa." 

"  There  was  almost  a  panic  there  too,  as  the  members  of  the 
council  were  mostly  merchants,  and  were  filled  with  dismay  for 
the  safety  of  their  ships  and  goods  at  sea.  Of  course,  there 
was  no  thought  that  the  corsairs,  however  strong,  would  vent- 
ure an  attack  upon  Genoa  itself.  I  told  them  that  you  had 
captured  three  of  the  corsairs  with  a  single  galley,  and  that  if 
they  could  send  you  ten  others  you  would  probably  be  able  to 
make  head  against  the  pirates ;  but,  as  I  have  told  you,  Genoa 
is  at  peace  with  all  the  world  ;  her  war-galleys  are  laid  up,  and 
most  of  them  would  need  repair  and  recaulking  before  they 
would  be  fit  to  send  to  sea.  Although  they  maintained  that 
no  more  than  a  week  should  elapse  before  they  would  be  ready 
to  sail  I  am  right  sure  that  it  will  be  double  that  time  before 
they  are  fitted  out. 

' '  Of  course,  in  Genoa  I  was  well  known,  though  my  family 
estates  lie  near  Mantua,  and  my  acquaintances  flocked  round 
me  and  urged  me  to  stay  until  the  galleys  were  ready  for  sea. 


238  A    KNIGHT    OF   THE    WHITE    CROSS 

This  I  would  not  hear  of,  and,  six  hours  after  my  arrival, 
started  again.  We  made  the  voyage  to  Corsica  at  a  good 
speed,  but  since  then  we  have  had  the  oars  constantly  out  to 
help  the  sails.  The  men  have  well  earned  their  pay,  I  can  as- 
sure you.  It  is  enough  to  make  one  mad  with  rage  to  think 
that  these  pirates  will  be  able  to  harry  the  coast  of  Italy  at 
their  pleasure ;  for  there  can  be  little  chance  that  they  will 
abide  quiet  much  longer  at  this  rendezvous." 

"  It  is  annoying,  indeed,"  Gervaise  agreed;  and-  a  murmur 
of  disappointment  ran  round  the  assembled  knights.  "  How- 
ever, we  have  the  consolation  that  we  have  done  all  we  could, 
and  I  am  sure  that  we  shall  do  so  in  the  future." 

Gervaise  had  charged  Ralph  to  say  nothing  about  the  object 
of  his  mission,  and  the  general  supposition  was  that  he  had 
sailed  to  endeavour  to  purchase  some  bullocks,  as  the  supply  of 
meat  was  nearly  exhausted.  Ralph  himself  had  let  drop  a  few 
words  to  this  effect,  and  had  indeed  been  charged  by  Gervaise 
to  bring  off  a  few  oxen  if  they  could  be  obtained  without  loss 
of  time. 

Gervaise  was  on  deck  at  midnight,  and  soon  afterwards  the 
beat  of  oars  was  heard.  It  was  a  still  night,  and  one  of  the 
knights  on  watch  remarked  to  him, — 

"  It  seems  to  me,  Sir  Gervaise,  that  the  sound  is  a  confused 
one,  and  that  there  must  be  several  vessels  rowing.  Shall  I 
call  up  our  companions  ?  It  may  be  that  it  is  the  pirate  fleet 
coming  out." 

"  You  need  not  do  that,"  Gervaise  replied.  "  I  am  expect- 
ing Sir  Ralph  to  bring  back  with  him  some  fishing-boats,  for 
which  I  think  I  can  find  a  use.  We  should  have  heard  before 
this  if  the  corsairs  had  been  putting  out.  Fosco  is  in  his  boat 
watching  the  mouth  of  the  inlet,  and  would  have  started  with 
the  news  had  there  been  any  stir  on  board  their  galleys." 

It  was  a  quarter  of  an  hour  before  a  number  of  dark  objects 
entered  the  little  bay.  As  soon  as  they  did  so,  they  ceased 
rowing,  and  the  splashes  of  the  anchors  as  they  fell  into  the 


THE   CORSAIR    FLEET  239 

water  were  heard.     Then  came  the  sound  of  a  boat's  oars,  and 
Ralph  was  soon  alongside. 

"  I  see  that  you  have  succeeded,  Ralph." 
"  There  is  no  fear  of  failing  when  one  is  ready  to  pay  the 
full  value  of  what  one  wants  to  get.  I  have  bought  three 
coasters  and  eight  fishing-boats,  and  have  a  sufficient  store  of 
pitch  and  oil,  with  plenty  of  straw  and  faggots.  There  was  no 
difficulty  in  getting  men  to  come  with  me.  As  soon  as  they 
heard  that  a  fleet  of  eighteen  Moorish  galleys  was  in  the  next 
bay,  they  were  ready  enough  to  aid  in  any  plan  for  their  de- 
struction, for  they  knew  well  enough  that  some  of  them  would 
be  sure  to  make  raids  all  along  the  coast,  sacking  and  burning, 
and  carrying  off  men,  women,  and  children,  as  slaves.  I  said 
I  only  wanted  two  men  for  each  craft,  but  so  many  were  will- 
ing to  come  that  I  have  some  thirty  more  than  the  number  I 
asked  for,  and  we  can  divide  these  among  us.  They  are  strong, 
active-looking  fellows." 

"  We  will  keep  them  here  then,  Ralph.  You  see,  there  are 
one-and-twenty  of  our  knights  in  the  three  prizes,  and  as  we 
lost  two  in  the  capture,  and  four  others  are  not  fit  to  put  on 
armour,  we  have  but  six-and-twenty,  and  the  addition  will  be 
very  welcome.  What  are  they  armed  with?" 

"  They  have  bows  and  arrows,  and  long  pikes  and  axes." 
"  Good.     Have  you  managed  to  collect  any  more  arms?  " 
"Yes.     The  people  are  all  charcoal  burners  and  woodmen 
in  winter,  and  I  was  therefore  able  to  get  together  some  thirty 
or  forty  axes  and  hatchets,  which  will  be  ample,  with  the  arms 
we  took  from  the  Moors,  to  equip  the  ninety  Christians." 
"  I  think  we  can  depend  upon  these  for  fighting,  Ralph." 
"I  don't  think  there  is  any  doubt  about  that.     A  few  of 
them  are  pretty  well  worn  out  with  labour  and  suffering,  but 
all  have  gained  strength  and  spirits  greatly  in  the  past  week, 
and  you  may  be  sure  that  they  will  fight  to  the  death  rather 
than  run  the  risk  of  another  turn  in  the  galleys. ' ' 
"  And  have  you  got  the  stuff  to  make  the  mantles?  " 


240  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  Yes.  There  was  plenty  of  the  coarse  black  cloth  which 
they  wear  in  summer — in  winter,  of  course,  they  are  clad  in 
sheepskins ;  and  I  have  sufficient  white  cotton  cloth  to  make 
the  crosses." 

"  We  have  only  one  thing  to  wish  for  now,  Ralph,  and  that 
is,  that  the  corsairs  may  not  take  it  into  their  heads  to  sail  to- 
morrow. Fosco  will  bring  me  news  at  daybreak,  and  we  will 
at  once  send  another  boat  off  to  watch  the  mouth  of  the  bay 
when  he  leaves  it.  If  they  sail,  we  cannot  venture  to  attack 
them  as  long  as  they  keep  together,  the  odds  are  far  too  heavy, 
and  our  only  plan  will  be  to  follow  them  at  A  distance,  when 
we  can  just  keep  their  upper  sails  in  sight,  and  then  to  attack 
any  detachment  that  may  separate  from  the  main  body. ' ' 

"  I  hope  it  will  not  come  to  that,  Gervaise.  It  would  be 
hard  indeed,  when  you  have  devised  such  a  splendid  plan,  and 
we  have  got  everything  ready  to  carry  it  out,  if  they  were  to 
give  us  the  slip.  Do  the  others  know  anything  about  it  yet?  " 

"  No.  I  thought  it  better  to  keep  silence  till  to-morrow. 
No  doubt  some  of  the  galley-slaves  understand  enough  of  one 
or  other  of  our  languages  to  gather  what  is  on  foot.  Besides, 
their  late  captives  might,  in  their  satisfaction  at  the  thought  of 
revenge,  say  enough  to  them  to  let  them  know  that  an  attack 
on  their  fleet  was  intended,  and  one  of  them  might,  in  some 
way,  free  himself  from  his  irons  and  swim  ashore.  We  know 
there  is  a  smaU  fishing  village  across  the  island,  and  there 
would  be  no  difficulty  in  stealing  a  boat  and  making  off  with 
the  news.  I  do  not  say  that  the  risk  is  great ;  still,  it  were 
better  not  to  throw  away  even  a  chance.  The  knights  have 
all  turned  in  in  a  very  gloomy  mood,  for  Caretto  has  returned 
with  news  that  there  is  no  hope  of  assistance  from  Genoa  for  a 
fortnight,  and  it  seemed,  therefore,  that  all  our  pains  had  been 
thrown  away.  And  now  we  may  as  well  turn  in  until  daylight. ' ' 


A   SPLENDID    EXPLOIT  241 

CHAPTER  XV 

A   SPLENDID    EXPLOIT 

/^ERVAISE  was  up  again  at  dawn.  He  was  amused  at  the 
\J  wonder  of  the  knights,  as  they  came  up  one  by  one,  at 
the  sight  of  the  little  fleet  anchored  outside  them.  As  soon 
as  it  was  fairly  daylight,  he  sent  off  to  the  three  prizes  to  re- 
quest all  the  knights  to  come  on  board  the  galley.  When  all 
were  assembled  there  he  said,  "  You  are  all  aware,  comrades, 
that  Sir  Fabricius  Caretto  has  brought  news  that  the  galleys  at 
Genoa  are  all  laid  up,  and  that  it  will  be  a  fortnight  before 
they  can  put  to  sea.  Long  before  that,  the  corsairs  will  as- 
suredly be  ravaging  all  the  villages  and  small  towns  along  the 
coast  of  Italy,  unless  we  can  prevent  their  doing  so.  It  would 
be  simple  madness  to  try  to  attack  them  at  sea ;  of  that  I  feel 
sure  you  are  all  conscious.  It  would  be  only  throwing  away 
our  lives  and  our  galley. ' ' 

There  was  a  murmur  of  assent  among  the  knights.  They 
were  ready  for  any  encounter  in  which  there  was  a  chance, 
however  faint,  of  success  ;  but  all  saw  that  for  a  single  galley 
to  attack  one  of  the  largest  corsair  fleets  that  had  ever  set  out, 
would  be  nothing  short  of  insanity.  Their  leader's  words, 
however,  seemed  to  show  that  he  had  some  plan  in  his  mind  by 
which  he  hoped  to  strike  a  blow  at  the  enemy,  and  all  listened 
eagerly  for  what  was  coming. 

"  We  have  heard  from  our  comrade  Fosco  that  their  ships 
lie  moored  in  two  lines,  side  by  side  in  a  narrow  inlet.  He 
has  returned  this  morning  with  the  news  that  they  are  still  there. 
He  thinks  that  three  or  four  more  have  arrived  during  the  last 
two  days,  and  it  is  probable  they  are  waiting  for  the  three  we 
captured  to  join  them.  To-night  it  is  my  intention  to  attack 


242  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

them,  but  not  by  rowing  in  and  boarding  them,  for  that  would 
be  hopeless.  Yesterday  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt  went,  as  you  are 
aware,  to  fetch  provisions.  But  this  was  a  part  only  of  the 
object  of  his  trip.  He  has,  as  you  see,  brought  back  eleven 
craft  with  him  ;  these,  I  may  tell  you,  are  laden  with  combus- 
tibles— pitch,  oil,  straw,  and  faggots.  They  will  be  rowed  and 
towed  to  the  inlet  to-night,  set  on  fire,  and  launched  against 
the  pirates." 

An  enthusiastic  cheer  broke  from  the  knights.  They  saw  at 
once  that,  lying  as  the  corsairs  were,  side  by  side,  the  destruc- 
tion of  many  of  them  was  certain. 

"  He  has  also  brought  fishermen,"  Gervaise  went  on,  "  two 
or  three  of  whom  will  go  in  each  fire-ship,  having  a  boat  towing 
behind,  in  which  they  will  escape  as  soon  as  the  craft  are  along- 
side the  galleys.  The  galley  and  the  three  prizes  will  take 
their  post  at  the  mouth  of  the  inlet.  The  fire  of  our  guns  will 
add  to  the  confusion  among  the  pirates,  and  we  shall  endeavour 
to  fall  upon  any  galleys  that  may  extricate  themselves  from  the 
mass,  and  try  to  make  their  escape.  Sir  Ralph  has  brought 
back  materials  for  making  ninety  mantles  of  the  Order,  for  the 
Christians  on  board  the  three  prizes,  and  thirty  fishermen  to 
bring  the  crew  of  our  galley  up  to  its  full  strength.  The  light 
of  the  flames  will  suffice  to  show  the  pirates  that,  as  they  will 
believe,  four  vessels,  manned  by  knights  of  the  Order,  are  bar- 
ring the  entrance.  Many  will,  we  may  calculate,  jump  over- 
board and  swim  ashore  rather  than  face  us,  and  we  shall  be 
able,  at  any  rate,  to  capture  three  or  four  of  their  craft,  for,  as 
they  come  out,  one  by  one,  we  can  all  close  round  them  ;  and 
with  nearly  fifty  knights,  ninety  released  captives,  burning  for 
vengeance,  and  some  fifty  or  sixty  fishermen — for  those  from  the 
fire-ships  will,  of  course,  join  us — we  shall  make  short  work  of 
them,  and  may  even  hope  to  entirely  destroy  their  fleet." 

Again  a  joyous  shout  rose  from  the  knights.  This  would 
indeed  be  an  exploit  that  all  might  be  proud  to  share  in,  and, 
breaking  the  ranks  in  which  they  had  stood  while  Gervaise 


A   SPLENDID    EXPLOIT  243 

addressed  them,  they  crowded  round  him  with  exclamations  of 
enthusiasm  and  devotion. 

"  Now,"  he  said,  as  soon  as  silence  was  a  little  restored,  "  the 
knights  of  the  langues  on  board  the  prizes  will  send  at  once  to 
the  coaster  on  the  left  of  the  other  two.  Sir  Ralph  will  go 
there  now,  and  supply  each  with  materials  for  making  the  man- 
tles for  the  Christians ;  he  has  brought  thread,  and  fishbone 
needles.  You  will  see  that  the  stuff  is  cut  up  into  suitable 
lengths,  and  handed  over  to  your  crews,  and  that  each  man 
makes  up  his  mantle.  There  can  be  but  little  sewing  required 
for  these  sleeveless  gowns,  nor  need  it  be  carefully  done.  The 
great  thing  is  that  the  white  crosses  shall  be  conspicuous.  As 
soon  as  you  have  set  them  to  work,  you  will  examine  the  state 
of  the  arms,  see  how  many  more  are  needed  to  complete  the 
list,  and  then  send  off  to  Sir  Ralph,  who  will  furnish  as  many  as 
are  required  :  the  fishermen  have  brought  their  own  weapons. 
See  that  the  slaves  are  all  well  fed  to-day,  and,  before  evening, 
inspect  well  their  fetters,  so  that  you  may  be  free  from  all  anxi- 
ety as  to  an  attempt  by  them  to  escape  during  the  conflict. 

' '  The  rest  of  you  will  go  on  board  these  native  craft,  and  see 
that  the  combustibles  are  fairly  distributed  among  them,  the 
wood  and  straw  soaked  with  pitch  and  oil,  as  also  the  sails  and 
ropes,  and  that  the  decks  are  well  coated  ;  this  is  a  most  im- 
portant duty.  Get  some  torches  made  also,  so  that  there  shall 
be  two  on  board  each  craft ;  these  are  to  be  lighted  the  last 
thing  before  we  get  to  the  point,  and  will  be  thrown  down 
into  the  straw  and  faggots  in  the  hold,  by  the  fishermen  when 
they  get  close  to  the  corsairs.  All  this  can  be  prepared  before 
our  morning  meal,  and  when  you  assemble  here  I  hope  to  re- 
ceive your  reports  that  everything  is  in  readiness.  One  of  the 
other  coasters  has  some  bullocks  on  board.  Sir  Ralph  will  send 
one  to  each  of  the  prizes,  and  one  to  us.  They  had  better  be 
killed  and  cut  up  at  once,  in  order  that  the  crews  may  have 
two  good  meals  to-day  of  fresh  meat.  See  that  the  galley- 
slaves  have  their  share. ' ' 


244  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

No  time  was  lost  in  carrying  out  the  orders.  Ralph,  as 
soon  as  the  cloth,  arms,  and  meat  were  distributed,  went  round 
in  a  boat  to  see  that  the  combustibles  were  properly  laid  for 
firing,  and  everything  done  to  insure  that  the  flames  should 
spread  rapidly.  The  Sards  shared  in  the  work,  and  rations 
and  wine  were  distributed  to  them  ;  and  when  the  knights  sat 
down  to  their  meal  on  board  the  galley,  they  were  able  to  re- 
port that  everything  was  in  perfect  readiness,  and  that  the 
work  of  sewing  the  mantles  was  making  good  progress. 

The  day  passed  slowly  to  the  young  knights,  all  of  whom 
were  burning  with  excitement  at  the  thought  of  the  coming 
fray.  The  released  Christians  were  no  less  exultant  at  the  pros- 
pect of  taking  vengeance  for  the  sufferings  they  had  so  long  en- 
dured, and  the  scene  on  board  all  four  ships  was  most  animated. 

After  talking  it  over  with  Ralph,  Gervaise  told  off  three 
more  of  the  knights  to  each  of  the  prizes,  so  that  there  should 
be  ten  on  board  each.  This  reduced  the  strength  on  board  the 
galley  to  seventeen  ;  but  as  they  would  have  the  assistance  of  a 
strong  band  of  Sards  they  considered  this  to  be  ample,  under 
the  circumstances.  It  was  arranged  that  the  galley,  with  one 
of  the  prizes,  should  close  with  the  first  corsair  that  came  out, 
and  that  the  other  two  prizes  should  attack  the  second.  After 
capturing  these,  they  were  to  assist  each  other  as  circumstances 
might  dictate.  Gervaise  strongly  impressed  upon  the  knights 
in  command  of  each  prize  that  they  were  not,  single-handed,  to 
attack  a  corsair  unless  one  of  their  consorts  was  near,  and  free 
to  give  assistance. 

"  We  must  run  no  risk  of  a  reverse,"  he  said.  "  We  are 
certain  of  destroying  many  of  their  vessels  and  of  breaking  up 
their  fleet,  and  it  is  far  better  that  a  few  should  escape  than 
that  we  should  run  the  risk  of  losing  ten  of  our  number,  to  say 
nothing  of  those  we  have  rescued  from  captivity.  In  the  ex- 
citement of  the  fight  this  order  must  be  strictly  borne  in  mind. 
Our  victory  must  be  marred  by  no  misfortune  brought  on  by 
headstrong  rashness.  The  corsairs  are  bound  to  be  very 


A   SPLENDID    EXPLOIT  245 

strongly  manned,  and  ten  knights,  even  aided  by  such  assist- 
ance as  they  may  get  from  the  Christians,  might  find  themselves 
altogether  over-matched  against  a  crowd  of  desperate  men." 

As  soon  as  it  was  dusk  the  anchors  were  drawn  up,  and  the 
fleet  got  under  way.  They  proceeded  but  slowly,  for  the  wind 
was  light,  and  the  fishing- boats  moved  heavily  through  the 
water.  There  was,  however,  no  occasion  for  speed,  for  Ger- 
vaise  did  not  wish  to  commence  the  attack  until  past  midnight. 
The  guns  had  all  been  loaded  before  starting,  and  a  pile  of 
ammunition  was  placed  near  each.  Presently  the  wind  nearly 
died  out,  and  the  galley  and  prizes  then  took  the  coasters  and 
fishing  craft  in  tow.  It  was  nearly  one  o'clock  when  they  got 
within  half  a  mile  of  the  inlet.  The  tow-ropes  were  then 
thrown  off,  the  fishermen  got  out  sweeps,  and  the  galley  led 
the  way,  the  fire-ships  followed  in  a  body,  and  the  three  prizes 
brought  up  the  rear.  The  oars  had  all  been  muffled,  and 
slowly  they  made  their  way,  until  Fosco,  who  was  standing 
next  to  Gervaise  on  board  the  galley,  said  that  the  point  just 
ahead  marked  the  entrance  to  the  inlet.  They  then  stopped 
rowing  until  the  fire-ships  were  all  close  up. 

These  were,  as  had  previously  been  arranged,  in  two  lines. 
Five  fishing-boats,  each  manned  by  four  men  and  having  its 
small  boat  in  tow  behind  it,  formed  the  first  line ;  the  three 
coasters,  each  with  six  men  at  the  oars,  and  the  three  other 
fishing-boats,  formed  the  second.  The  torches  were  now 
lighted.  Ralph  took  his  place  in  the  centre  boat  of  the  first 
line ;  Gervaise  went  on  board  one  of  the  coasters,  and  the 
order  was  given  to  the  men  to  row.  What  wind  there  was 
was  favourable,  blowing  from  the  north-west,  and  therefore 
right  into  the  inlet.  Scarcely  had  the  first  boats  reached  the 
entrance  when  a  shout  was  heard. 

"Row,  men,  your  hardest  now!"  Ralph  shouted;  the 
Sards  bent  to  their  oars,  and  the  five  boats  advanced  rapidly 
towards  the  corsairs.  As  they  did  so,  a  babel  of  shouts  and 
cries  rose  from  the  dark  mass  of  ships,  which  swelled  into  a 


246  A   KNIGHT   OF  THE  WHITE   CROSS 

tumult  of  alarm  as  on  Ralph's  order,  "  Throw  your  torches 
into  the  straw  !  "  a  flash  of  flame  leapt  up  from  each  boat. 
Five  more  strokes,  and  they  were  alongside  the  two  outside 
ships.  As  they  crashed  heavily  into  them,  the  men  leapt 
from  their  seats  and  sprang  over  into  the  small  boats,  threw  off 
the  painters,  and  rowed  astern,  opening  on  either  hand  to 
allow  the  second  line  of  fire-ships  to  pass.  These,  by  Ger- 
vaise's  directions,  divided,  and  three  bore  along  on  either 
side  of  the  corsairs,  and  then  ran  in  among  them,  throwing 
grapnels  to  fasten  the  fire-ships  alongside.  Then,  as  the  flames 
sprang  up  from  the  holds,  the  crews  betook  themselves  to  their 
boats,  and  rowed  out  of  the  inlet. 

By  the  time  they  reached  the  galley  and  prizes,  the  eleven 
fire-ships  were  a  mass  of  flame,  which  was  spreading  to  the 
corsairs.  Lying  packed  together  as  these  were,  the  confusion 
was  terrible.  Numbers  of  men  endeavoured  to  push  off  the 
fire-ships,  but  it  was  too  late ;  others  tried  to  extricate  their 
galleys  from  the  mass,  throwing  off  the  hawsers,  and  striving 
with  hand  and  oar  to  push  their  vessels  out  of  the  line.  As 
soon  as  the  boats  were  alongside  the  galley,  the  guns  of  the 
four  vessels  opened  fire  with  grape  into  the  crowded  ships, 
now  lit  up  by  the  flames  as  clearly  as  at  noontide,  while  the 
battle-cry  of  the  Order  sounded  high  above  the  din. 

"  Nothing  can  save  the  ships  near  this  end  of  the  line," 
Ralph  said,  "  but  some  of  those  behind  may  make  their  way 
out  between  the  others  and  the  rocks.  I  can  see  that  some 
of  them  there  are  lowering  their  yards  and  sails  to  prevent 
their  catching  fire  as  they  pass. ' ' 

The  knights  distributed  among  the  guns  worked  them  in- 
cessantly, directing  their  fire  chiefly  against  the  outside  ships, 
so  as  to  hinder  the  crews  in  their  endeavours  to  arrest  the 
progress  of  the  flames  ;  but  they  were  soon  able  to  fire  impar- 
tially into  the  mass.  As  the  heat  of  the  flames  drove  the 
pirates  back,  scores  of  men  leapt  overboard,  and  made  for  the 
shore.  Presently,  two  or  three  ships  were  seen  making  their 


A   SPLENDID    EXPLOIT  247 

way  along  the  narrow  line  of  water  on  either  side  of  the  flam- 
ing group  in  front.  As  the  first  advanced,  the  galley  and 
one  of  the  prizes  rowed  a  short  distance  forward  to  meet  it. 
Its  deck  was  crowded  with  men,  among  whom  a  discharge  of 
the  cannon  from  both  ships  created  terrible  slaughter. 

A  moment  afterwards  they  closed  with  it,  one  on  either 
side,  and  the  knights,  the  released  captives,  and  the  Sards, 
sprang  down  on  to  its  deck.  The  fight  lasted  but  a  minute. 
Appalled  by  the  disaster  that  had  befallen  them,  by  the  ter- 
rible effect  of  the  broadsides,  poured  in  at  a  few  yards'  dis- 
tance, and  by  the  sight  of  so  many  of  the  dreaded  warriors  of 
the  Cross,  some  of  the  corsairs  threw  down  their  arms  and 
flung  themselves  on  the  deck  or  into  the  hold,  crying  for  quar- 
ter ;  those  who  resisted  fell  either  under  the  swords  of  the 
knights,  the  vengeful  axes  of  the  late  captives,  or  the  pikes  of 
the  Sards ;  but  the  great  bulk,  leaping  from  the  bow  or  stern, 
swam  ashore. 

"  Back  to  your  ships  !  "  Gervaise  shouted,  the  moment  re- 
sistance ceased.  "  Leave  her  floating  here;  she  will  help  to 
block  the  way." 

Six  vessels  alone  managed  to  make  their  escape  from  the 
blazing  mass  of  ships,  and  all  of  these  were  captured  almost 
as  easily  as  the  first  had  been.  As  soon  as  it  seemed  that  all 
the  remainder  were  involved  in  the  flames,  boats  were  lowered 
and  sent  on  board  the  prizes  to  take  possession.  Save  for  the 
wounded  on  the  decks,  they  were  entirely  deserted  by  their 
crews,  as  those  who  had 'run  below,  as  soon  as  they  found 
that  their  captors  had  left  the  vessels,  dropped  into  the  water, 
and  made  their  way,  either  by  swimming  or  with  the  assist- 
ance of  oars,  to  the  shore.  There  remained  only  the  slaves, 
chained  to  their  benches.  A  few  of  these  had  been  killed  by 
the  broadsides ;  but  the  guns  had  been  aimed  at  the  poops 
and  forecastles,  where  the  corsairs  were  clustered  together, 
and  consequently  the  number  of  galley-slaves  who  had  fallen 
was  comparatively  small. 


248  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE  WHITE   CROSS 

In  none  of  the  galleys  was  the  proportion  of  Christians  any> 
thing  like  so  large  as  that  in  the  three  prizes  first  taken,  the 
greater  portion  being  men  of  inland  tribes  who  had  been  capt- 
ured in  warfare,  or  malefactors  who,  instead  of  being  exe- 
cuted, had  been  sold  to  the  corsairs.  Nevertheless,  in  the  six 
galleys  some  seventy  Christians  were  found,  and  at  once  freed. 
It  was  terrible  to  think  that  in  the  galleys  that  had  been  de- 
stroyed a  large  number  of  Christians  must  have  perished  in  the 
flames,  and  Gervaise  expressed  bitter  regret  that  he  had  not 
considered  that  his  attack  by  fire-ships  must  necessarily  in- 
volve the  loss  of  so  many  Christian  lives. 

"  It  can't  be  helped,"  Ralph  said,  as  Gervaise  poured  out 
his  feelings  to  him.  "  To  very  many  of  them  death  must  have 
been  welcome,  and  if  we  had  not  attacked  them  as  we  did, 
and  they  had  sailed  for  Italy,  hundreds,  if  not  thousands,  of 
Christians  would  have  been  killed,  and  as  many  more  carried 
away  into  captivity ;  so,  you  see,  the  balance  is  all  in  favour 
of  the  course  we  adopted. ' ' 

Gervaise  admitted  this,  but  nevertheless  his  regret  at  the 
fate  of  so  many  unfortunate  captives  quite  overpowered  for 
the  time  his  satisfaction  at  the  complete  success  that  had  been 
achieved.  The  victory  had  been  almost  a  bloodless  one  on 
the  part  of  the  assailants.  A  few  of  the  knights  had  received 
wounds.  Two  among  the  Christian  crews  had  been  killed, 
and  four  Sards ;-  while  twoscore  had  received  wounds  more  or 
less  serious,  as,  unlike  the  knights,  they  had  no  defensive  ar- 
mour. While  waiting  for  daylight  to  appear,  all  their  wounds 
were  dressed  and  bandaged  by  the  knights.  In  the  morning 
the  captured  galleys  were  towed  out,  and  anchored  a  short  dis- 
tance away,  and  then  Gervaise  rowed  up  to  the  head  of  the 
inlet,  followed  by  the  other  three  ships.  They  found  that 
eleven  of  the  corsairs  had  been  burnt,  and  to  their  satisfaction, 
they  discovered  four  uninjured  galleys  lying  there,  deserted, 
save  by  the  slaves. 

Seeing  the  fate  of  their  comrades  who  had  first  issued  out, 


A   SPLENDID    EXPLOIT  249 

the  commanders  had,  instead  of  trying  to  escape,  rowed  quietly 
to  the  head  of  the  inlet,  the  movement  being  covered  by  the 
flame  and  smoke,  and  had  there  landed,  having  laden  them- 
selves with  stores  for  their  support  on  shore.  This  was  a  great 
satisfaction  to  the  knights,  for  not  only  did  it  swell  the  list  of 
prizes,  but  it  reduced  by  over  thirty  the  number  of  Christian 
slaves  who  had  perished  in  the  flames.  Taking  the  galleys  in 
tow,  they  rowed  out  of  the  inlet,  whose  banks  were  strewn 
with  half-charred  timbers,  oars,  and  relics  of  the  fight. 

As  soon  as  they  had  anchored  by  the  side  of  their  first 
prizes,  a  council  was  held  on  board  the  Santa  Barbara.  It 
was  clearly  impossible  to  take  thirteen  prizes  to  Rhodes,  for 
there  would  be  but  three  or  four  knights  to  each,  and  were 
they  to  fall  in  with  but  one  Moorish  pirate,  they  might  suffer 
great  disaster,  while,  should  they  meet  with  a  storm,  they 
would  fare  badly  indeed,  as  they  could  not  depend  upon  the 
rescued  Christians  for  the  management  of  the  sails  and  oars  in 
heavy  weather.  At  the  same  time,  all  were  most  anxious  that 
the  prizes  should  be  carried  to  Rhodes.  Never,  save  as  the  re- 
sult of  some  great  battle,  had  such  a  fleet  of  captured  galleys 
been  brought  in,  and  the  knights  were  prepared  to  endure  all 
dangers  rather  than  part  with  one  of  them.  Finally,  after  much 
discussion,  it  was  determined  that  they  should  make  for  Genoa. 
From  thence  the  rescued  captives  would  be  able  to  find  their 
way  to  their  homes.  The  great  majority  were  Italians  and 
Spaniards ;  the  former  could  proceed  by  land  or  sea  to  their 
respective  homes,  while  the  Spaniards  would  have  no  long 
time  to  wait  before  a  vessel  of  their  own  nationality  entered 
the  port,  even  if  one  were  not  lying  there  when  they  arrived. 
Moreover,  in  any  case  it  would  be  necessary  to  despatch  a  ves- 
sel to  Genoa,  in  order  that  it  might  be  known  that  the  danger 
was  averted,  and  that  there  was  no  longer  any  necessity  for 
getting  the  galleys  ready  for  sea. 

The  chief  ostensible  reason,  however,  for  going  to  Genoa 
was  that  there  would  be  no  difficulty  in  engaging  as  many 


250  A  KNIGHT   OF   THE  WHITE   CROSS 

sailors  as  might  be  necessary  to  take  the  prizes  to  Rhodes. 
Underlying  all  the  arguments  was  another  reason  which  Ralph 
laughingly  stated. 

"It  is  all  very  well  to  bring  forward  one  argument  after 
another,  but  not  one  of  you  has  the  courage  to  say  what  I  am 
sure  all  of  you  have  at  the  bottom  of  your  hearts.  You  know 
very  well  that  you  want  to  go  to  Genoa  to  enjoy  a  triumph. 
The  Rhodians  are  all  very  well,  but  there  are  very  many  more 
fair  faces  at  Genoa.  Fie,  Sir  Knights  !  Such  a  spirit  is  little 
in  accordance  with  the  vows  of  the  Order.  Are  we  not  bound 
to  humility  ?  And  here  you  are  all  longing  for  the  plaudits  of 
the  nobles  and  ladies  of  Genoa !  ' ' 

Some  of  the  young  knights  laughed,  others  coloured  hotly. 

"  They  need  not  be  ashamed  of  the  feeling,"  Caretto  said. 
"  Is  it  not  the  ardent  desire  of  all  true  knights  to  do  gallant 
deeds,  and  do  they  not  value  above  all  things  the  guerdon  of 
applause  from  the  fair  eyes  of  ladies.  Your  comrades  have 
performed  the  gallant  deeds,  and  well  deserve  the  reward. 
Now,  Sir  Gervaise,  if  not  for  this  reason,  at  any  rate  for  the 
others  that  have  been  brought  forward,  I  suppose  we  are  all 
agreed  that  we  sail  for  Genoa.  For  our  part  we  are  heartily 
glad  that  such  is  your  decision.  We,  and  the  young  knights 
of  our  langue,  have  many  friends  there,  and  in  their  name  I 
am  sure  I  can  promise  you  a  reception  as  hearty  and  sincere  as 
that  which  we  shall  ourselves  receive. ' ' 

It  was  settled  that  the  rescued  captives  should  be  divided 
equally  among  the  thirteen  prizes,  and  that  three  knights 
should  go  in  each.  The  Moorish  captives  were  also  divided 
equally  among  them,  to  aid  with  the  sails,  and  to  row  a  few 
oars,  in  case  of  a  dead  calm  setting  in.  The  commands  were 
distributed  according  to  seniority,  the  three  rescued  Italian 
knights  remaining  on  board  the  Santa  Barbara  with  Gervaise. 

The  Sards  were  anxious  to  return  to  their  villages,  in  order 
to  carry  the  news  that  several  hundreds  of  Moorish  pirates  had 
landed. 


A   SPLENDID   EXPLOIT  251 

"  We  shall  have  great  trouble  with  them,"  one  of  the  young 
fishermen,  who  spoke  a  little  Italian,  said  to  Gervaise.  "There 
are  always  a  great  number  of  swine,  and  herds  of  goats,  up 
among  the  forests  on  the  hills.  We  must  send  up  and  drive  in 
as  many  of  these  as  possible,  and  of  course  we  shall  send  mes- 
sengers to  Tempe ;  but  it  will  need  a  very  large  force  to  com- 
bat these  pirates,  who  will  be  able  to  come  down  and  plunder 
and  destroy,  and  then  retire  to  the  hills,  whence  it  will  be 
hard  to  dislodge  them." 

"  I  am  sorry  indeed  that  such  trouble  should  have  been 
caused  to  you, ' '  Gervaise  replied ;  ' '  but  I  am  afraid  that  I 
can  give  you  no  assistance." 

"  We  shall  hunt  them  down  in  time,"  the  Sard  said  confi- 
dently. "  There  are  many  villages  scattered  about  Tempe, 
and  what  with  us  fishermen,  and  the  woodmen  and  charcoal- 
burners,  we  shall  soon  get  a  strong  body  together.  Besides, 
we  know  the  mountains,  and  they  do  not." 

"  I  should  say  that  you  had  best  avoid  a  pitched  battle  with 
them,  but  keep  on  harassing  them  by  night  and  day,  cutting 
off  all  who  separate  themselves  from  the  main  body,  until  at 
last  they  are  completely  worn  out." 

"  We  shall  deal  with  them,  Sir  Knight.  We  are  all  hunters, 
for  there  are  wild  boars  and  stags  in  the  forest,  and  wolves 
too,  and  wild  sheep  on  the  higher  mountains.  Every  man 
among  us  can  use  his  bow  skilfully,  and  wield  pike  and  hatchet. 
The  hunt  will  not  be  unprofitable,  either,  for  we  can  get  a 
good  price  for  all  we  take  alive,  to  work  in  the  mines." 

An  hour  later  one  of  the  galleys  started  with  the  Sards  for 
their  villages  in  the  bay  of  Tempe.  After  landing  them,  she 
was  to  rejoin  the  rest  of  the  fleet  at  their  former  anchorage  at 
Madalena.  By  nightfall  all  were  gathered  there,  and  the  next 
morning  they  set  out  for  Genoa.  The  wind  was  light ;  but 
in  their  anxiety  to  return  home  as  soon  as  possible  the  released 
captives  all  volunteered  to  take  their  former  places  on  the 
benches,  and  the  vessels  were  kept  going  at  a  fair  rate  of  speed 


252  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

T\vo  days'  rowing  took  them  to  Bastia,  where  their  approach 
created  unbounded  excitement  until  the  banner  of  the-  Order 
was  seen  floating  from  the  stern  of  the  Santa  Barbara,  while 
smaller  flags,  that  had  been  hastily  manufactured,  flew  from 
the  mastheads  of  the  thirteen  prizes.  Even  then  the  inhabi- 
tants feared  to  put  out,  believing  that  the  flags  were  but  a 
ruse,  and  numbers  of  them  fled  at  once,  with  their  families 
and  valuables,  to  the  mountains.  It  was  not  until  a  boat  was 
lowered,  and  Ralph,  accompanied  by  three  or  four  other 
knights,  rowed  ashore,  that  the  panic  was  allayed. 

As  soon  as  it  was  understood  that  the  galley  of  the  knights 
had  not  only  captured  the  thirteen  corsairs,  but  had  destroyed 
eleven  others,  and  had  thus  annihilated  a  fleet  that  was  in- 
tended to  prey  upon  the  commerce  of  Italy,  and  ravage  the 
western  coast,  the  alarm  was  succeeded  by  the  wildest  enthu- 
siasm. By  the  time  Ralph  had  obtained  the  fresh  meat  and 
stores  he  came  ashore  to  purchase,  the  greater  part  of  the  popu- 
lation were  gathered  on  the  shore,  and  a  flotilla  of  boats  put 
out  with  him,  filled  with  picturesquely-dressed  men  and  wom- 
en. Some  carried  flags,  others  green  boughs,  while  the  ladies 
had  bouquets  and  baskets  of  fruit.  The  galley  was  the  first 
attraction,  and,  mounting  her  sides,  the  ladies  presented  their 
offerings  of  fruit,  while  the  men  cheered,  and  waved  their  hats ; 
many  musicians  came  out  in  the  boats,  and  these  played  on 
bagpipes  and  three-reeded  flutes  a  succession  of  airs  peculiar 
to  the  island. 

Gervaise  received  his  visitors  on  the  poop.  These  were  at 
first  altogether  incredulous  when  told  that  it  was  the  lad  be- 
fore them  who  had  commanded  the  galley,  had  performed 
such  a  remarkable  feat,  and  had  freed  them  from  a  terrible 
danger.  The  youth  of  the  knights  of  the  Order  no  less  sur- 
prised them,  and  had  not  Gervaise  assured  them  that  it  was 
altogether  contrary  to  the  rules  of  the  Order  for  a  knight  to 
allow  himself  to  be  embraced,  many  of  the  ladies  would  have 
taken  this  form  of  showing  their  enthusiasm  and  gratitude. 


A   SPLENDID    EXPLOIT  253 

The  next  morning  the  fleet  started  for  Genoa.  The  wind  was 
much  stronger  than  it  had  been  on  the  previous  day,  and  it 
was  therefore  unnecessary  for  the  oars  to  be  put  out,  except, 
indeed,  on  board  the  galley.  There,  at  nightfall,  the  Chris- 
tians relieved  the  slaves  for  some  hours  at  their  benches,  and 
the  next  morning  the  circle  of  hills  round  Genoa,  with  the  city 
nestling  at  their  feet  on  the  water's  edge,  and  climbing  for 
some  distance  up  their  slopes,  was  in  view.  Caretto  at  once 
suggested  that  it  would  be  well  to  signal  to  the  fleet  to  lie  to. 

"  If  we  do  not  do  so,"  he  said,  "  they  will  assuredly  think 
that  it  is  the  corsair  fleet  advancing  to  attack  and  burn  the 
vessels  in  port,  and  you  may  be  saluted  as  you  approach  by  a 
shower  of  cannon-balls.  If  you  will  permit  me,  Sir  Gervaise, 
I  will  go  forward  in  one  of  the  prizes  and  explain  matters,  and 
will  return  here  in  a  short  time." 

"  Thank  you,  Sir  Fabricius.  As  such  mischance  as  you 
mention  might  indeed  very  well  occur,  we  will  lower  sail  and 
lie  here  until  you  return." 

While  Caretto  was  away,  the  knights  and  crews  breakfasted, 
and  the  former  put  on  their  armour  and  gayest  attire,  in  readi- 
ness for  the  landing.  Gervaise,  although  with  much  inward 
vexation,  considered  it  necessary  to  do  the  same. 

"  I  do  wish,"  he  said  to  Ralph,  who  was  smiling  at  his  rue- 
ful face,  "  that  you  could  for  to-day  take  my  place,  and  let 
me  pass  as  lieutenant." 

"  I  should  not  mind  at  all,  Gervaise.  But  you  must  put  up 
with  the  disagreeables  as  well  as  the  advantages  of  being 
commander,  and  must  submit  to  be  honoured  and  feted  here, 
as  well  as  getting  no  end  of  credit  at  Rhodes.  You  will  have 
the  satisfaction  of  well  deserving  it,  for  I  am  sure  the  plan  of 
attacking  them  with  fire-ships  would  never  have  occurred  to 
any  one  else,  and  if  it  had  not  been  for  that,  we  should  have 
had  the  mortification  of  seeing  them  sail  off  without  being 
able  to  move  a  finger  to  interfere  with  them." 

"  If  one  were  fighting  for  fame  and  honour,  all  that  would 


254  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

be  true  enough ;  but  members  of  an  Order,  whose  sole  object 
is  to  defend  Christendom  from  the  Moslems,  should  strive  only 
to  do  their  duty,  and  care  nothing  for  such  things  as  honour 
and  glory. ' ' 

"  Human  nature  is  human  nature,  and  I  don't  see  any  rea- 
son why  one  should  despise  honour  and  glory  when  they  come 
to  one  in  the  course  of  duty.  I  fancy  you  will  think  so  too, 
Gervaise,  in  course  of  time.  I  am  quite  sure  that  among  the 
fifty  knights,  there  is  not  one  who  does  not  feel  well  content 
that  he  has  not  only  done  his  duty  to  the  Order,  but  has 
gained  a  share  in  the  credit  and  honour  that  will  certainly  be 
given  to  all  who  have  taken  a  part  in  so  crushing  a  defeat  of 
the  corsairs.  As  for  myself,  I  do  not  for  a  moment  pretend 
that  I  am  not  sensible  of  the  fact  that,  as  second  in  command 
of  the  galley,  my  chances  of  obtaining  promotion  in  the  Order 
are  very  greatly  improved." 

It  was  nearly  two  hours  before  Caretto  returned. 

"  It  was  well  indeed  that  I  went  in,"  he  said  to  Gervaise, 
"  for  I  found  the  city  in  an  uproar.  The  alarm  bells  of  the 
churches  were  calling  all  citizens  to  arms,  and  troops  were  be- 
ing hurried  down  to  the  forts  and  batteries.  Rumour  had  of 
course  exaggerated  the  strength  of  the  fleet,  and  half  the  pop- 
ulation believed  that  the  safety  of  the  city  itself  was  menaced 
by  the  approach  of  a  mighty  squadron.  As  soon  as  my  news 
was  bruited  abroad,  and  they  learned  that  the  fleet  consisted 
solely  of  prizes  captured  from  the  Moors  by  a  galley  of  the 
Order,  alarm  quickly  changed  into  delight,  the  sharp,  angry 
clang  of  the  bells  was  succeeded  by  peals  of  gladness,  and  the 
joy  of  the  citizens  at  being  relieved  from  the  cloud  of  anxiety 
that  had  hung  over  the  city  since  my  last  visit,  was  unbound- 
ed. I  went  at  once  to  the  council-chamber,  where  I  found 
many  of  the  leading  citizens  already  assembled,  having  been 
summoned  in  hot  haste  as  soon  as  our  approach  was  made  out. 
At  first  they  were  almost  incredulous  when  I  told  them  tRat 
every  ship  of  the  pirate  fleet  had  been  either  destroyed  or  capt- 


FESTIVITIES  255 

ured,  and  that  the  fleet  in  the  offing  consisted  entirely  of  your 
galley  and  the  thirteen  corsairs  she  had  captured.  As  soon  as 
they  really  grasped  the  fact,  they  sent  off  messengers  to  the 
churches  to  order  the  joy-bells  to  be  rung,  and  to  the  dock- 
yard to  arrest  all  work  upon  the  galleys.  Then  I  had  to  give 
them  a  short  account  of  the  surprise  and  destruction  of  the 
corsair  fleet,  and  finally  they  begged  me  to  ask  you  to  delay 
your  entry  to  the  port  for  a  couple  of  hours,  in  order  that  they 
might  have  time  to  prepare  a  suitable  reception  for  you." 

"I  suppose  there  is  no  help  for  it,"  Gervaise  said.  "  Is 
there  anything  that  we  ought  to  do  ?  " 

"  I  should  decorate  the  galley  with  all  the  flags  on  board  : 
should  set  every  one  to  work  to  make  great  flags  with  the  cross 
of  the  Order  to  hoist  to  the  masthead  of  the  prizes,  instead  of 
the  little  things  that  are  now  flying  ;  and  under  them  we  will 
hoist  the  flags  of  the  corsairs,  among  which  are  those  of  Trip- 
oli, Tunis,  and  Algiers.  I  do  not  know  that  there  is  aught  else 
we  can  do." 


CHAPTER  XVI 

FESTIVITIES 

AT  last  the  fleet,  headed  by  the  galley,  to  which  all  the 
knights  had  returned,  rowed  towards  the  port.  A  gun 
flashed  out  from  the  fort  at  its  entrance,  and  at  once  those 
from  all  the  other  batteries  responded ;  bells  pealed  out  again, 
and  a  confused  roar  of  cheering  broke  from  the  crowds  occu- 
pying every  spot  from  which  a  view  of  the  harbour  could  be 
obtained.  The  ships  in  the  port  were  all  decked  with  flags, 
and  the  front  windows  and  balconies  of  every  house  were  hung 
with  tapestries  and  bright  curtains.  As  soon  as  the  galley  en- 
tered the  port,  a  state  barge,  flying  the  flag  of  the  Republic, 
advanced  to  meet  her  from  the  wharf.  As  she  approached, 


256  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

Ralph  gave  orders  for  the  oars  to  be  laid  in,  and  the  barge 
was  soon  alongside.  The  knights  were  already  ranged  along 
the  poop,  and,  accompanied  by  Ralph  and  Caretto,  Gervaise 
moved  to  the  gangway  to  receive  the  visitors.  At  their  head 
was  Battista  Fragoso,  the  doge,  in  his  robe  of  state,  and  follow- 
ing him  were  a  body  of  the  highest  nobles  of  Genoa,  all  brill- 
iant in  gala  costume. 

"  This,  my  lord  duke,"  Caretto  said,  "  is  Sir  Gervaise  Tresh- 
am,  a  knight  commander  of  our  Order,  and  the  commander  of 
this,  their  galley.  He  has  before,  as  you  may  well  believe  from 
his  appointment  to  so  honourable  a  post,  highly  distinguished 
himself,  but  what  he  has  before  accomplished  is  far  surpassed 
by  the  brilliant  action  that  he  has  now  achieved.  He  has  won 
a  victory  that  not  only  reflects  the  highest  honour  upon  the 
Order,  but  is  an  inestimable  service  to  Italy,  and  has  freed  her 
from  a  corsair  fleet  that  would  have  been  a  scourge  to  her,  both 
at  sea  and  to  the  towns  and  villages  along  the  coast.  Not  only 
has  he,  with  the  brave  knights  under  his  orders,  annihilated 
the  corsair  fleet,  burning  eleven  of  their  galleys,  and  capturing 
thirteen  others,  but  he  has  restored  to  freedom  no  less  than 
two  hundred  Christian  captives,  among  them  the  cavaliers 
Giacomo  da  Vinci,  Pietro  Forzi,  and  myself." 

"  In  the  name  of  the  Republic,  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham,  and  I 
may  say  in  that  of  all  Italy,  I  thank  you  most  heartily  for  the 
splendid  service  that  you  have  rendered  us.  It  would  have 
seemed  to  me  Well-nigh  incredible  that  a  single  galley,  even  if 
commanded  and  manned  by  the  most  famous  knights  of  your 
great  Order,  should  have  accomplished  so  extraordinary  a  feat. 
Still  more  strange  is  it  that  it  should  have  been  performed  by 
so  young  a  knight,  with  a  crew  composed,  as  Sir  Fabricius 
Caretto  has  told  us,  of  knights  chosen  from  among  the  young- 
est of  the  Order. " 

"You  give  far  more  credit  to  us,  your  Highness,  than  we 
deserve,"  Gervaise  replied.  "  Three  of  the  ships  were  indeed 
captured  in  fair  fight,  but  we  caught  the  rest  asleep  and  so 


FESTIVITIES  257 

massed  together  as  to  be  incapable  of  successful  resistance,  and 
they  fell  easy  victims  to  the  fire-ships  we  launched  against 
them.  Any  credit  that  is  due  to  me  is  shared  equally  by  my 
sub-commander  here,  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt,  and  indeed  by  every 
knight  of  my  company. ' ' 

"  This,  doubtless,  may  be  so,  Sir  Gervaise,"  the  doge  said, 
with  a  slight  smile,  "but  it  is  to  the  head  that  plans,  rather 
than  to  the  hand  that  strikes,  that  such  success  as  you  have 
achieved  is  due;  and  the  credit  of  this  night  attack  is,  as  the 
cavalier  Caretto  tells  me,  wholly  yours,  for  until  you  issued 
your  final  orders  it  seemed  to  him,  and  to  the  two  good 
knights  his  companions,  that  there  was  naught  to  do  but  to 
remain  in  port  and  watch  this  corsair  fleet  sail  away  to  carry 
out  its  work  of  destruction." 

By  this  time  they  had  reached  the  poop  of  the  galley. 
Gervaise  now  called  forward  the  knights  one  by  one,  and  pre- 
sented them  to  the  doge,  who  expressed  to  them  all  the  grati- 
tude felt  by  himself  and  the  whole  of  the  citizens  of  Genoa  for 
the  service  they  had  rendered  to  the  Republic.  This  cere- 
mony being  over,  the  knights  broke  up  their  ranks  and  con- 
versed for  a  few  minutes  with  those  who  had  come  on  board 
with  the  doge.  The  latter  then  took  his  place  in  the  barge 
with  his  companions,  inviting  Gervaise  and  Ralph  to  accom- 
pany him.  As  the  barge  left  the  side  of  the  galley,  which 
followed  closely  behind  her,  the  guns  again  thundered  out  their 
welcome,  and  a  roar  of  greeting  rose  from  the  inhabitants.  On 
landing,  the  party  waited  until  the  knights  had  joined  them, 
and  then  proceeded  up  the  street  to  the  ducal  palace,  amidst 
enthusiastic  cheering  from  the  crowd  that  lined  the  road,  oc- 
cupied the  windows  and  balconies,  and  even  scrambled  on  the 
house-tops,  the  ladies  waving  their  handkerchiefs  and  scarves. 

At  the  palace  were  assembled  all  the  municipal  authorities, 
and  the  congratulations  given  on  board  were  here  repeated. 
After  this  there  was  a  great  banquet,  at  which  Gervaise  was 
placed  on  the  right  hand  of  the  doge,  who,  at  the  conclusion 


258  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

of  the  feast,  called  upon  the  assembled  guests  to  drink  to  the 
health  of  the  knights  of  St.  John,  who  had  saved  the  commerce 
and  sea-coast  of  Italy  from  the  greatest  danger  that  had  men- 
aced them  since  the  days  when  the  Northern  rovers  had  deso- 
lated the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean.  The  toast  was  drunk 
with  enthusiasm,  and  Gervaise  then  replied  with  a  few  words 
of  thanks  for  the  honour  done  to  himself  and  his  comrades. 

The  party  then  left  the  banqueting-hall  for  the  great  recep- 
tion-rooms, where  the  wives  and  daughters  of  all  the  nobles 
and  principal  citizens  of  Genoa  were  assembled.  Most  of  the 
young  knights,  belonging  as  they  did  to  noble  families,  and 
accustomed  from  childhood  to  courtly  ceremonies  and  festivi- 
ties, were  quite  at  home  here.  Caretto,  his  two  companions, 
and  their  six  Italian  comrades,  speedily  introduced  them,  and 
each  was  soon  surrounded  by  a  group  of  ladies,  anxious  to  hear 
from  his  lips  the  details  of  the  exploits  of  the  galley. 

"  But  how  is  it  that  you  are  all  so  young,  Sir  Ralph  ?  "  one 
of  the  ladies,  to  whom  Harcourt  had  been  introduced  as  the 
second  in  command,  asked  him,  when  he  had  finished  his 
account  of  the  capture  of  the  galleys.  "  We  heard  from  those 
who  met  you  on  landing,  that  all  your  comrades  were  young, 
but  we  were  filled  with  surprise  when  you  entered  the  room, 
for  many  of  them  are  but  lads. ' ' 

"  You  may  say  that  all  of  us  are  but  lads,  Countess.  I  am 
the  oldest  of  the  party,  and  am  but  little  over  twenty-two,  but 
few  of  the  others  are  over  nineteen ;  they  are  all  professed 
knights  of  the  Order,  who,  as  you  doubtless  know,  come  out  to 
Rhodes  when  only  sixteen.  Some,  of  course,  do  not  join  until 
later,  but  I  think  that  all  here  entered  at  the  earliest  age  per- 
mitted, and  almost  all  had  served  in  two  or  three  voyages  in 
the  galleys  before  they  were  appointed  to  the  Santa  Barbara. 
The  reason  why  so  young  a  crew  was  chosen  was  that  our  com- 
mander was  also  young.  He  had  done  such  exceptional  ser- 
vice to  the  Order  that  he  was  appointed  to  the  command  of  a 
galley,  and  he  has,  as  all  will  allow,  well  justified  the  choice. 


FESTIVITIES  259 

It  was  because  it  was  deemed  inexpedient  to  place  knights 
many  years  his  senior  under  his  command,  and  partly,  perhaps, 
to  encourage  the  younger  knights,  by  giving  them  an  excep- 
tional opportunity  of  distinguishing  themselves,  that  the  crew 
was  chosen  entirely  from  their  ranks.  I  was  selected  as  second 
in  command  because  Gervaise  and  I  had  been  special  friends 
when  we  came  out  from  England  in  the  same  ship,  and  had 
before  fought  side  by  side  against  the  Moslems." 

"  I  see  that  you  wear  gilded  spurs,  Sir  Ralph,"  another  lady 
said  ;  "  you  must  therefore  be  a  dubbed  knight  ?  " 

"  Yes ;  I  had  the  good  fortune  to  be  knighted  by  D'Aubus- 
son  himself,  at  the  same  time  that  Sir  Gervaise  was  also  so 
honoured.  It  was  for  an  affair  with  the  Turkish  pirates.  It 
was  Gervaise  who  really  won  the  honour,  for  I  had  no  share 
in  the  affair,  save  that  of  doing  my  best  in  the  fight." 

"  And  who  could  do  more  ?  "  the  countess  queried. 

"Gervaise  could  do  more,  Countess,  as  was  shown  in  that 
attack  on  the  corsairs  by  means  of  fire-ships.  He  has  a  head 
to  plan,  and,  in  the  case  I  speak  of,  a  happy  thought  of  his 
not  only  saved  the  lives  of  ourselves  and  Sir  John  Boswell, 
but,  indirectly,  was  the  means  of  preventing  two  of  our  galleys 
being  captured  by  the  corsairs." 

' '  Which  is  Sir  Gervaise  ?  ' '  one  of  the  ladies  asked. 

Ralph  smiled. 

"  Look  round  the  hall,  signoras,  and  see  if  any  of  you  can 
pick  him  out  from  the  rest  of  us. " 

The  ladies  looked  round  the  hall. 

"  There  are  only  about  twenty  here  ;  the  rest  are  in  the 
other  rooms.  Do  not  set  us  to  work  guessing,  if  he  is  not  in 
sight,  Sir  Ralph." 

' '  Oh  yes,  he  is  in  sight.  Now  do  each  of  you  fix  on  the 
one  you  think  most  accords  with  your  ideas  of  what  a'  knight, 
brave  in  action  and  wise  and  prudent  in  council,  would  be  like." 

The  six  ladies  each  fixed  on  one  of  the  young  knights. 

"You  are  all  wrong,"  said  Ralph. 


260  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

"How  can  we  choose?"  the  countess  said  laughingly, 
"  when  none  of  them  resemble  our  ideal  hero  ?  Most  of  them 
are  pleasant  and  courtly-looking  youths,  but  as  yet  there  is 
scarce  a  vestige  of  hair  on  their  faces,  and  one  could  not  fancy 
any  of  them  as  the  destroyer  of  the  fleet  of  corsairs. ' ' 

"  Do  you  see  the  one  speaking  to  the  elderly  lady  in  the 
recess  ?  ' ' 

"  Yes;  she  is  the  wife  of  Fragoso.  You  do  not  mean  to  say 
that  that  lad  is  the  commander  of  the  galley  ?  Why,  he  looks 
the  youngest  of  you  all." 

"  He  is  between  seventeen  and  eighteen,  and  there  are  several 
others  who  are  no  older.  Yes,  that  is  Sir  Gervaise,  Knight 
Commander  of  the  Order  of  St.  John." 

"  But  how  can  he  possibly  have  served  his  time  as  a  pro- 
fessed knight  ? ' ' 

tl  He  was  one  of  the  grand  master's  pages,  and  his  time  in 
that  service  counted  just  as  it  would  have  done  had  he  entered 
as  a  professed  knight ;  and  at  fifteen,  therefore,  he  stood  in  the 
same  position  as  those  three  or  four  years  older  than  himself. 
He  speaks  Turkish  as  well  as  our  own  tongue,  and,  as  I  told 
you,  we  received  the  accolade  at  the  hands  of  the  grand  master, 
a  year  and  a  half  ago.  He  is  now  a  knight  commander,  and 
will  assuredly  one  day  occupy  one  of  the  highest  posts  in  the 
Order." 

"  You  do  not  speak  as  if  you  were  jealous,  Sir  Ralph ;  and 
yet  methinks  it  cannot  be  pleasant  for  you  all  to  have  one 
younger  than  yourselves  placed  at  your  head." 

"  I  do  not  think  there  is  one  of  us  whoso  feels,"  Ralph  said 
earnestly.  "  In  the  first  place,  he  has  performed  excellent 
service ;  in  the  next  place,  even  those  who  did  not  know  him 
before,  have  felt,  since  we  started,  that  he  is  a  born  leader. 
Then,  too,  we  regard  with  pride  one  who  has  brought  credit 
upon  the  younger  members  of  the  Order.  Moreover,  we  all 
owe  our  posts  in  the  galley  to  the  fact  that  he  was  chosen 
for  its  command.  It  is  a  difficult  position  for  him  to  fill,  but 


FESTIVITIES  261 

he  has  managed  so  that,  while  all  obey  his  orders  as  cheer- 
fully and  willingly  as  if  he  were  a  veteran,  when  off  duty  we 
regard  him  as  one  of  ourselves." 

"  You  are  a  staunch  friend,  Sir  Ralph." 

"  I  am  a  staunch  friend  of  Sir  Gervaise,  Countess,  for  the 
more  I  know  of  him  the  more  I  care  for  him.  He  well  deserves 
the  promotion  and  honour  that  have  fallen  to  his  share." 

"  Will  you  bring  him  across  here  to  us,  Sir  Ralph  ?  I  want 
to  talk  to  this  hero  of  yours,  and  I  am  sure  that  my  daughter 
is  longing  to  be  introduced  to  him." 

Ralph  waited  until  Gervaise  was  disengaged,  and  then 
brought  him  across,  and,  after  introducing  him,  moved  away  at 
once,  leaving  Gervaise  to  be  interrogated  by  the  ladies. 

"  You  must  be  accustomed  to  festivities,  Sir  Gervaise,  for  we 
have  just  heard  that  you  were  one  of  the  grand  master's  pages  ?  ' ' 

"  I  am  accustomed  to  them,  signora;  but  that  is  not  at  all 
the  same  thing  as  liking  them." 

The  reply  was  given  so  earnestly  that  all  the  ladies  smiled. 

"Your  taste  is  quite  exceptional.  Do  you  mean  to  say 
that  you  would  rather  be  on  board  your  galley  than  here  ?  " 

"It  would  not  be  polite,"  Gervaise  said,  with  a  laugh,  "  if 
I  were  to  say  that  I  would  infinitely  rather  be  on  board ;  but 
indeed  I  have  not,  like  most  of  my  comrades,  been  brought  up 
in  court  or  castle.  Until  the  day  I  joined  the  Order,  we  led 
the  lives  of  exiles.  My  father  belonged  to  the  defeated  party 
in  England,  and,  save  for  a  few  months  when  the  cause  to 
which  he  was  attached  was  triumphant,  we  lived  quietly  on 
the  estates  he  had  recovered,  our  life  being  one  of  care  and 
anxiety.  So,  you  see,  I  had  no  training  in  gaiety  and  pleasure. 
At  Rhodes  there  are  state  receptions  and  religious  pageants, 
but  a  meeting  such  as  this,  is,  of  course,  impossible  in  a  con- 
vent ;  and  since  I  was  eleven  years  old  1  think  I  have  only 
once  spoken  to  a  woman.  So  you  can  well  understand,  sig- 
nora, that  I  feel  awkward  in  speech,  and  I  pray  you  to  make 
allowance  for  my  ignorance  of  the  language  of  courtesy,  such 


262  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

as  would  naturally  be  expected  in  a  knight,  even  though  be- 
longing to  a  religious  Order." 

' '  There  is  naught  to  make  allowance  for, ' '  the  countess  said 
gently.  "  Women  can  appreciate  simple  truth,  and  are  not,  as 
men  seem  to  think,  always  yearning  for  compliments.  Those 
who  are  most  proficient  in  turning  phrases  are  not  often  among 
those  foremost  in  battle,  or  wisest  in  council,  and  I  can  tell 
you  that  we  women  value  deeds  far  higher  than  words.  Sir 
Fabricius  Caretto  is  a  cousin  of  mine,  and  has  this  afternoon 
been  speaking  so  highly  of  you  to  me  and  my  young  daughter 
here,  that  I  am  glad  indeed  to  make  your  acquaintance.  How 
long  do  you  intend  to  stay  in  Genoa  ?  ' ' 

"  No  longer  than  it  will  take  me  to  engage  men  to  carry 
the  prizes  to  Rhodes.  I  am  afraid  that  sounds  rude,"  he  broke 
off,  as  he  noticed  a  smile  on  the  faces  of  the  ladies. 

"Not  rude,"  said  the  countess;  "though  most  knights 
would  have  put  it  differently,  and  said  that  their  duty  com- 
pelled them  to  leave  as  soon  as  the  prizes  could  be  manned. 
But  it  comes  to  the  same  thing.  Of  course,  you  will  remain 
the  guest  of  the  doge  as  long  as  you  are  here ;  otherwise,  it 
would  have  given  us  the  greatest  pleasure  to  have  entertained 
you.  My  cousin  is,  of  course,  staying  with  us,  and  you  see 
we  all  feel  a  very  deep  obligation  to  you.  He  has  been  so  long 
a  slave  among  the  Moors,  that  we  had  almost  come  to  hope 
death  had  freed  him  from  his  fetters ;  so  you  may  imagine 
our  pleasure  when  he  arrived  here  so  suddenly  ten  days  ago. 
We  were  expecting  that  he  would  remain  with  us  for  some  time, 
but  he  says  that  he  must  first  go  back  to  Rhodes,  after  which  he 
will  ask  for  leave,  and  return  here.  We  have  a  banquet  to- 
morrow evening  to  celebrate  his  return,  and  earnestly  hoped 
that  you  would  be  present,  but,  since  you  say  that  you  do  not 
care  for  such  gaieties,  we  shall,  if  you  prefer  it,  be  glad  if  you 
will  come  to  join  us  at  our  family  meal  at  twelve." 

"  Thank  you,  countess,  I  should  very  greatly  prefer  it,  and 
it  will  give  me  real  pleasure  to  come." 


FESTIVITIES  263 

"  Your  friend,  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt,  has  been  telling  us  how 
you  have  destroyed  the  corsair  fleet  that  has  been  so  alarming 
us.  He,  too,  is  an  Englishman,  though  he  speaks  Italian  well." 

"  Yes,  he  speaks  it  a  great  deal  better  than  I  do,"  Gervaise 
said.  "  He  is  a  dear  friend  of  mine,  and  it  is,  indeed,  chiefly 
owing  to  his  support  and  influence  that  I  have  been  able  to 
manage  so  pleasantly  and  well  in  the  command  of  a  body  of 
young  knights,  most  of  whom  are  my  seniors." 

' '  He  tells  us  that  you  speak  Turkish  ?  ' ' 

"Yes;  I  thought  that  it  would  be  very  useful,  and  spent 
nearly  a  year  in  acquiring  it,  the  bailiff  of  my  langue  being 
kind  enough  to  relieve  me  of  all  other  duties.  I  was  fortunate 
enough  to  find  in  one  of  the  servants  of  the  auberge  a  well- 
educated  and  widely-informed  Turk,  who  was  a  very  pleasant 
companion,  as  well  as  an  excellent  instructor,  and  I  learnt 
much  from  him  besides  his  language.  The  knowledge  of 
Turkish  has  already  proved  to  me  most  useful,  and  was  indeed 
the  means  by  which  I  obtained  both  my  commandery  and 
my  appointment  as  captain  of  the  galley." 

' '  Perhaps  you  will  tell  us  the  story  to-morrow  ;  that  is,  if  it 
is  too  long  to  tell  us  now  ?  ' ' 

"  It  is  indeed  much  too  long  ;  but  if  it  will  interest  you  I 
shall  be  glad  to  recount  it  to-morrow." 

The  next  day  Gervaise  went  to  the  palace  of  the  Countess 
Da  Forli.  She  was  a  widow  with  no  children,  except  Claudia, 
the  young  daughter  who  had  accompanied  her  to  they?/*?  the 
evening  before.  Caretto,  and  four  or  five  relations  of  the 
family,  were  the  only  guests  beside  himself.  It  was  a  quiet 
and  sociable  meal,  and  served  with  less  ceremony  than  usual,  as 
the  countess  wished  to  place  Gervaise  as  much  as  possible  at  his 
ease.  During  the  meal  but  little  was  said  about  the  affair  with 
the  pirates,  Caretto  telling  them  some  of  his  experiences  as  a 
captive. 

"  It  is  well,  Claudia,"  he  said,  laughing,  "  that  you  did  not 
see  me  at  the  time  I  was  rescued,  for  I  was  such  a  scarecrow 


264  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

that  you  would  never  have  been  able  to  regard  me  with  due 
and  proper  respect  afterwards.  I  was  so  thin  that  my  bones 
almost  came  through  my  skin." 

"  You  are  thin  enough  now,  cousin,"  the  girl  said. 

"I  have  gained  so  much  weight  during  the  last  ten  days 
that  I  begin  to  fear  that  I  shall,  ere  long,  get  too  fat  to  buckle 
on  my  armour.  But,  bad  as  the  thinness  was,  it  was  nothing 
to  the  dirt.  Moreover,  I  was  coming  near  to  losing  my  Voice. 
There  was  nothing  for  us  to  talk  about  in  our  misery,  and 
often  days  passed  without  a  word  being  exchanged  between 
Da  Vinci,  Forzi,  and  myself.  Do  you  know  I  felt  almost 
more  thankful  for  the  bath  and  perfumes  than  I  did  for  my 
liberty.  I  was  able  at  once  to  enjoy  the  comfort  of  the  one, 
while  it  was  some  time  before  I  could  really  assure  myself  that 
my  slavery  was  over,  and  that  I  was  a  free  man  again. ' ' 

"  And  now,  Sir  Gervaise,"  the  countess  said,  when  the  meal 
was  over,  "it  is  your  turn.  Claudia  is  longing  to  hear  your 
story,  and  to  know  how  you  came  to  be  in  command  of  a  galley. ' ' 

"And  I  am  almost  as  anxious,"  Caretto  said.  "  I  did  not 
like  to  ask  the  question  on  board  the  galley,  and  have  been 
looking  forward  to  learning  it  when  I  got  to  Rhodes.  I  did, 
indeed,  ask  the  two  knights  who  accompanied  me-on  my  mis- 
sion here,  but  they  would  only  tell  me  that  every  one  knew 
you  had  performed  some  very  great  service  to  the  Order,  and 
that  it  concerned  some  intended  rising  among  the  slaves,  the 
details  being  known  to  only  a  few,  who  had  been,  they  un- 
derstood, told  that  it  was  not  to  be  repeated." 

"  It  was  a  very  simple  matter,"  Gervaise  said,  "  and  although 
the  grand  master  and  council  were  pleased  to  take  a  very 
favourable  view  of  it,  it  was,  in  fact,  a  question  of  luck,  just  as 
was  the  surprise  of  the  corsairs.  There  is  really  no  secret 
about  it — at  least,  except  in  Rhodes  :  there  it  was  thought 
best  not  to  speak  of  it,  because  the  fact  that  the  attempt  among 
the  slaves  was  almost  successful,  might,  if  generally  known, 
encourage  others  to  try  to  escape,  and  perhaps  with  greater 


FESTIVITIES  265 

success.  I  told  you  last  night,  Countess,  that  I  had  only  once 
before  in  the  last  six  or  seven  years  spoken  to  a  woman,  and 
it  was  on  that  occasion  that  the  adventure,  so  far  as  I  was 
concerned,  had  its  commencement." 

He  then,  beginning  at  his  visit  with  Ralph  Harcourt  to  the 
Greek  merchant  and  his  family  on  the  roof  of  the  house, 
recounted  the  suspicions  he  had  entertained,  the  manner  in 
which  they  were  confirmed,  and  the  method  by  which  he  had 
discovered  the  plot  for  the  rising.  He  was  interrupted  several 
times  when  he  attempted  to  abbreviate  the  story,  or  to  omit 
some  of  the  details,  and  there  were  exclamations  of  surprise 
at  his  proposal  to  personate  a  Turkish  prisoner,  and  to  share  the 
lot  of  the  slaves  in  their  prison,  and  on  the  benches  of  the  galley. 

"  I  had  no  idea,  Sir  Gervaise,"  Caretto  said,  when  he  had 
concluded,  "  that  you  too  had  been  a  galley-slave,  and  I  un- 
derstand now  the  care  you  showed  to  render  the  lot  of  the 
rowers  as  easy  as  possible.  It  was  a  splendid  scheme,  and 
well  carried  out.  Indeed,  I  no  longer  wonder  that  you  were 
appointed  to  the  command  of  a  galley,  and  received  a  rich 
commandery  in  England  at  the  hands  of  the  grand  master 
himself.  What  think  you,  Countess  ;  did  I  speak  too  highly 
in  his  favour  ?  " 

"  Not  one  jot,  cousin.  Why,  Sir  Gervaise,  it  seems  to  me 
that  you  have  been  born  two  centuries  too  late,  and  that  you 
should  have  been  a  knight  errant,  instead  of  being  sworn  to  obey 
orders,  and  bound  to  celibacy.  Do  you  wear  no  lady's  favour 
in  your  helm  ?  I  know  that  not  a  few  of  your  Order  do  so." 

"  As  I  have  said,  Countess,  I  know  no  ladies  who  would 
bestow  favours  upon  me ;  in    the  second   place,    I   am   but 
eighteen,  and  it  would  be  ridiculous  for  me  to  think  of  such 
matters  ;  lastly,  it  seems  to  me  that,  being  vowed  to  the  Or 
der,  I  can  desire  no  other  mistress." 

Claudia,  who  had  listened  with  rapt  attention  to  tne  story, 
whispered  in  her  mother's  ear.  The  latter  smiled. 

"  It  seems  to  me,  Sir  Gervaise,"  she  went  on,  "  that  after 


266  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

what  you  have  done  for  Italy  there  are  many  fair  maidens 
who  would  feel  it  an  honour  that  their  colours  should  be  borne 
by  one  who  has  shown  himself  so  valiant  a  knight.  You  see, 
a  gage  of  this  kind  does  not  necessarily  mean  that  there  is  any 
deep  feeling  between  the  knight  who  bears  it  and  the  lady 
who  bestows  it ;  it  shows  only  that  she,  on  her  part,  feels  it 
an  honour  that  her  gage  should  be  worn  by  a  distinguished 
knight,  and,  on  his  part,  that  he  considers  it  as  somewhat 
more  than  a  compliment,  and  wears  it  as  a  proof  of  regard 
on  the  part  of  one  whose  good  opinion  at  least  he  values.  It 
is  true  that  among  secular  knights  it  may  mean  even  more 
than  this,  but  it  ought  not  to  mean  more  among  knights  of  an 
Order  like  yours,  pledged  to  devote  their  lives  to  a  lofty  and 
holy  aim.  My  daughter  Claudia  whispers  to  me  that  she 
would  deem  it  an  honour  indeed  if  you  would  wear  her  token, 
accepting  it  in  the  spirit  in  which  I  have  spoken.  She  is 
fourteen  now,  and,  as  you  know,  a  maid  of  fourteen  here  is  as 
old  as  one  of  sixteen  or  seventeen  in  your  country. ' ' 

Gervaise  turned  to  the  girl,  who  was  standing  by  her  mother's 
chair,  looking  earnestly  at  him.  He  had  noticed  her  the  even- 
ing before ;  she  had  asked  no  questions,  but  had  listened  so  in- 
tently that  he  had  felt  almost  embarrassed.  Claudia's  was  a 
very  bright  face,  and  yet  marked  by  firmness  and  strength. 
He  turned  his  eyes  again  to  the  countess. 

"  I  never  thought  of  wearing  a  woman's  favour,"  he  said  ; 
"but  if  your  daughter  will  bestow  one  upon  me,  I  shall  be 
proud  to  wear  it,  and  trust  that  I  may  carry  it  unstained.  I 
shall  feel  honoured  indeed  that  one  so  fair,  and,  as  I  am  sure 
by  her  face,  so  deserving  of  all  the  devotion  that  a  knight  of 
our  Order  can  give,  has  thought  me  worthy  of  being  one  of 
those  on  whom  she  could  bestow  so  high  a  favour,  with  the 
confidence  that  it  would  be  ever  borne  with  credit  and  honour. ' ' 

"What  shall  I  give  him,  mother?"  Claudia  asked  the 
countess,  without  a  shadow  of  the  embarrassment  with  which 
Gervaise  had  spoken. 


CLAUDIA   GIVES   SIR   GERVAISE   A    CHAIN   OF  GOLD  TO  WEAR   AS   HER 
FAVOUR. 


FESTIVITIES  2G7 

"  Not  a  kerchief,  Claudia.  In  the  rough  work  of  the 
knights,  it  could  not  be  kept  without  spot  or  stain.  Moreover, 
if  I  judge  Sir  Gervaise  rightly,  methinks  he  would  prefer  some 
token  that  he  could  wear  without  exciting  attention  and  re- 
mark from  his  comrades.  Go,  fetch  him  any  of  your  jewels 
you  may  think  fit." 

"  Then  I  will  give  him  this,"  the  girl  said ;  and  unfasten- 
ing a  thin  gold  chain  she  wore  round  her  neck,  she  pulled  up 
a  heart-shaped  ornament,  in  pink  coral  set  in  gold  and  pearls. 

Her  mother  uttered  a  low  exclamation  of  dissent. 

"  I  know,  mother  ;  it  was  your  last  gift,  and  I  prize  it  far 
beyond  anything  I  have  ;  therefore,  it  is  all  the  more  fit  to  be 
my  token."  Then  she  turned  to  Geryaise,  and  went  on, 
without  the  slightest  tremor  in  her  voice,  or  accession  of  colour 
in  her  cheeks.  "  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham,  I  bestow  upon  you 
this  my  favour,  and  shall  deem  it  an  honour  indeed  to  know  that 
it  is  borne  by  one  so  brave  and  worthy.  You  said  that  you 
would  be  glad  to  be  one  of  those  who  bore  my  favours.  You 
will  be  more  than  that,  for  I  vow  to  you  that  while  you  live  no 
other  knight  shall  wear  a  favour  of  mine." 

"  Claudia  !  "  her  mother  said  disapprovingly. 

"  I  know  what  I  am  saying,  mother.  I  have  often  won- 
dered why  maidens  should  so  carelessly  bestow  their  favours 
upon  every  knight  who  begged  for  them,  and  have  said  to  my- 
self that  when  my  time  came  I  would  grant  it  but  once,  and 
only  then  to  one  whom  I  deemed  worthy  of  it  in  all  ways — 
one  in  whose  loyalty  and  honour  I  could  trust  implicitly,  and 
who  would  regard  it  as  something  sacred,  deeming  it  an  hon- 
our to  wear  it,  as  being  the  pledge  of  my  trust  and  esteem. 
Kneel,  Sir  Gervaise,  while  I  fasten  this  round  your  neck." 

Gervaise  took  out  the  small  brooch,  that  fastened  the  collar 
of  his  silken  doublet,  and  then  knelt  on  one  knee.  The  girl 
fastened  the  clasp  round  his  neck,  and  as  he  rose  he  hid 
the  heart  beneath  the  doublet,  and  fastened  the  collar.  "  Lady 
Claudia,"  he  said  earnestly,  "I  accept  your  favour  in  the 


268  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

spirit  in  which  you  bestow  it.  So  long  as  I  live  I  shall  prize 
and  value  it  beyond  any  honour  I  may  gain,  and  as  I  feel  it 
next  to  my  heart,  it  will  ever  recall  to  me  that  you  gave  it  me 
as  a  pledge  of  your  esteem  and  trust,  and  I  will  strive  to  the 
utmost  so  to  bear  myself  that  I  may  be  worthy  of  the  gift." 

None  of  the  others  spoke  while  the  little  ceremony  was  being 
performed.  Caretto  glanced  at  the  countess  with  an  amused 
smile,  but  the  latter  looked  grave,  and  somewhat  vexed. 
However,  she  made  an  effort  to  dispel  the  cloud  on  her  face, 
and,  when  Gervaise  ceased  speaking,  said, — 

"  This  has  been  a  somewhat  more  serious  business  than  I  in- 
tended, Sir  Gervaise.  But  do  not  think  that  I  regret  in  any 
way  the  course  it  has  taken;  'tis  well  for  a  maiden  on  the 
threshold  of  womanhood  that  she  should  place  before  herself  a 
lofty  ideal,  and  that  she  should  entertain  a  warm  feeling  of 
friendship  for  one  worthy  of  it.  So  also  it  is  good  for  a  young 
knight  to  know  that  he  has  the  trust  and  confidence  of  a  pure 
and  innocent  maiden  ;  such  a  knowledge  will  aid  him  to  be 
in  all  ways  true  to  the  vows  he  has  taken,  and  to  remember 
always  that  he  is  bound  to  be  not  only  a  valiant  knight  of  his 
Order,  but  a  sincere  soldier  of  the  Cross. ' '  Then  she  went  on 
^more  lightly.  "  Have  you  heard,  Sir  Gervaise,  that  there  is 
a  question  of  making  you  a  noble  of  Genoa?  " 

"  No,  indeed,"  Gervaise  replied,  in  great  surprise  ;  "  such 
an  idea  never  entered  into  my  thoughts." 

"  Nevertheless^  I  know  that  it  was  spoken  of  last  night,  and 
although  it  has  not  yet  been  finally  settled,  and  will  not  be 
until  the  council  meet  this  afternoon,  I  should  not  tell  you  if  I 
did  not  think  that  it  was  as  good  as  agreed  upon ;  and  I  am 
pleased  to  be  the  first  to  whisper  to  you  that  it  is  intended  to 
bestow  upon  you  an  honour  that  is  jealously  guarded  and  sel- 
dom granted,  even  to  crowned  heads,  unless  as  a  token  of 
gratitude  for  some  signal  service  done  to  the  Republic." 

"  I  should  feel  most  honoured  and  most  grateful,  Countess, 
for  so  extraordinary  a  favour,  did  I  feel  that  I  had  done  any 


FESTIVITIES  269 

extraordinary  action  to  merit  it.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that 
the  destruction  of  the  corsairs  has  saved  Genoa  and  all  the 
maritime  towns  from  immense  loss  by  damage  to  their  trade, 
and  by  the  raids  that  would  have  been  made  at  various  points 
on  the  coast.  But  I  cannot  see  that  the  mere  fact  that  we 
have  destroyed  their  fleet  merits  any  marked  honour.  They 
were  caught  in  a  trap,  and  half  of  them  burned,  and  this 
might  have  been  done  equally  as  well  by  the  Sardinian  fisher- 
men, unarmed,  and  without  our  aid.  As  to  the  fighting,  it 
was  of  small  account.  The  first  three  craft  we  captured  offered 
a  much  stouter  resistance,  and  we  lost  two  of  our  number ; 
but  in  the  other  affair  no  knight  was  killed,  or  even  seriously 
wounded,  and  believe  me,  Countess,  I  feel  absolutely  ashamed 
at  the  fuss  that  is  made  over  it.  It  seems  to  me  that  I  am  a 
sort  of  impostor,  obtaining  credit  under  false  pretences." 

"  No  man  is  a  fair  judge  of  his  own  actions,  Sir  Gervaise," 
Caretto  said.  "  A  man  may  believe  himself  a  Solon,  or  a  Ro- 
land ;  others  may  consider  him  as  a  fool,  or  an  empty  brag- 
gart ;  and  it  must  be  taken  that  the  general  opinion  of  the 
public  is  the  judgment -from  which  there  is  no  appeal.  It  is 
not  the  mob  of  Genoa  only  who  regard  the  services  that  you 
have  rendered  as  extraordinary,  but  it  is  the  opinion  of  the 
councillors  and  authorities  of  the  Republic,  and  of  those  who, 
like  myself,  have  borne  our  share  in  warfare,  that  not  only  is 
the  service  great,  but  that  it  is  due  to  the  singular  ability  with 
which  you,  in  command  of  only  a  single  galley,  have  wholly 
destroyed  or  captured  the  fleet  that  threatened  our  commerce. 
As  our  councillors,  therefore,  all  competent  judges,  are  unan- 
imous in  their  opinion  that  you  have  deserved  the  highest 
honours  that  Genoa  can  bestow  upon  you,  it  is  useless  for  you 
to  set  up  your  own  opinion  to  the  contrary.  Take  the  good 
things  that  fall  to  you,  Sir  Gervaise,  and  be  thankful.  It  is 
seldom  that  men  obtain  more  honours  than  they  deserve, 
while  it  very  often  happens  that  they  deserve  far  more  than 
they  obtain.  Fortune  has  doubtless  some  share  in  every  man's 


270  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

career  ;  but  when  it  is  not  once,  but  several  times,  that  a 
knight  gains  special  credit  for  deeds  he  has  performed,  we  may 
be  sure  that  fortune  has  less  to  do  with  the  matter  than  his 
personal  merits.  Three  times  have  you  earned  special  credit ; 
upon  the  first  occasion,  the  grand  master — no  mean  judge  of 
conduct  and  character — deemed  you  worthy  of  secular  knight- 
hood, an  honour  which  has  not,  in  my  memory,  been  be- 
stowed at  Rhodes  upon  any  young  knight ;  on  the  second,  you 
were  promoted  to  the  command  of  a  galley,  though  never  be- 
fore has  such  a  command  been  given  to  any,  save  knights  of 
long  experience  ;  and  now,  for  the  third  time,  the  councillors 
of  one  of  the  greatest  of  Italian  cities  are  about  to  do  you  hon- 
our. It  is  good  to  be  modest,  Sir  Gervaise,  and  it  is  better  to 
under-estimate  than  to  overrate  one's  own  merits,  but  it  is  not 
well  to  carry  the  feeling  to  an  extreme.  I  am  quite  sure  that 
in  your  case  your  disclaimer  is  wholly  sincere  and  unaffected ; 
but  take  my  advice,  accept  the  honours  the  world  may  pay 
you  as  not  undeserved,  determining  only  in  your  mind  that  if 
you  deem  them  excessive,  you  will  at  least  do  all  in  your 
power  to  show  that  they  are  not  ill-bestowed.  You  will  not, 
I  trust,  take  my  counsel  amiss." 

"  On  the  contrary,  Sir  Fabricius,"  Gervaise  said  warmly. 
"  I  am  really  but  a  boy  yet,  though  by  good  fortune  pushed 
strangely  forward,  and  I  am  glad  indeed  to  receive  council  from 
a  knight  of  vastly  greater  experience  than  myself;  and,  in 
future,  however  much  I  may  be  conscious  in  my  own  mind  that 
anything  I  have  done  is  greatly  overrated,  I  will  at  least  abstain 
from  protest.  And  now,  Countess,  I  must  pray  you  to  excuse 
me.  I  know  that  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt  is,  before  this,  down  at 
the  dockyard  waiting  my  coming  to  engage  sailors." 

"  You  will  come  to-morrow  at  the  same  time,  I  hope,  Sir 
Gervaise.  As  Claudia's  sworn  knight  we  have  now  a  claim 
upon  you,  and  for  the  short  time  that  you  remain  here  you 
must  regard  this  as  your  home,  although  you  must  necessarily 
remain  the  guest  of  the  doge." 


FESTIVITIES  271 

"He  is  a  fine  young  fellow,  indeed,"  Caretto  said,  after 
Gervaise  had  left.  "  There  is  no  affectation  about  his  modesty, 
and  he  really  considers  that  this  success  he  has  gained  is  solely 
a  stroke  of  good  fortune.  Of  course,  I  have  been  asking  many 
questions  about  him  of  the  young  knights  of  his  own  langue, 
Harcourt  among  them.  They  tell  me  that  he  is  always  in 
earnest  in  everything  he  undertakes.  He  is  without  a  rival 
among  the  younger  knights  of  the  convent  in  his  skill  in  arms, 
and  for  strength  and  activity  in  all  exercises  ;  he  seems  to  care 
nothing  for  the  ordinary  amusements  in  which  they  join  at 
Rhodes,  and  for  nine  months  was  scarcely  ever  seen  by  those 
in  the  auberge,  save  when  they  gathered  for  meals,  so  con- 
tinuously did  he  work  to  acquire  a  perfect  command  of  Turk- 
ish. How  thoroughly  he  succeeded  is  evident  from  the  fact 
that  he  was  able  to  live  among  the  galley-slaves  without  excit- 
ing any  suspicions  in  their  minds  that  he  was  other  than  he 
pretended  to  be,  a  Syrian  captive.  That  he  is  brave  goes 
without  saying,  though  perhaps  no  braver  than  the  majority 
of  his  companions.  The  extraordinary  thing  about  him  is  that 
although,  as  he  himself  says,  little  more  than  a  boy,  he  has  the 
coolness  to  plan,  and  the  head  to  carry  out,  schemes  that  would 
do  credit  to  the  most  experienced  captain.  He  is  already  a 
credit  to  the  Order,  and,  should  he  live,  will  assuredly  rise  to 
the  highest  offices  in  it,  and  may  even  die  its  grand  master. 
In  the  stormy  times  that  are  coming  on,  there  will  be  ample 
opportunities  for  him  still  further  to  distinguish  himself,  and  to 
fulfil  the  singular  promise  of  his  youth.  That  he  possesses  great 
tact,  as  well  as  other  qualities,  is  shown  by  the  enthusiasm  with 
which  his  companions  regard  him.  In  no  case,  among  those 
to  whom  I  have  spoken,  have  I  discerned  the  smallest  jealousy 
of  him.  The  tact  that  is  needed  to  stand  thus  among  fifty 
young  knights,  almost  all  his  seniors  in  age,  will  assuredly 
enable  him  later  on  to  command  the  confidence  and  affection 
of  older  men." 

When  the  other  guests  had  left,  and  Caretto  only  remained, 


272  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

the  countess  turned  to  Claudia.  "  You  went  too  far,  Claudia. 
I  was  willing  enough,  when  you  asked  me,  that  you  should  be- 
stow a  favour  upon  him.  Most  young  knights  wear  such  a 
favour,  which  may  be  a  sign  of  devotion,  but  which  far  more 
frequently  is  a  piece  of  gallantry.  In  the  case  of  a  knight 
hospitaller  it  can  only  be  the  latter ;  it  is  in  his  case  merely  a 
sign  that  he  has  so  distinguished  himself  that  some  maiden 
feels  a  pride  that  her  gift  should  be  carried  into  battle  by 
him,  and,  on  his  part,  that  he  too  is  proud  of  the  gift  so 
bestowed  by  one  whose  goodwill  he  prizes.  In  that  way  I 
was  willing  that  you  should  grant  him  your  favour.  But  the 
manner  in  which  you  gave  it  was  far  more  serious  than  the 
occasion  warranted,  and  your  promise  to  grant  no  similar 
favour  to  another  as  long  as  he  lived,  surprised,  and,  I  may 
almost  say,  shocked  me.  You  are,  according  to  our  custom 
here,  considered  almost  a  woman,  and  had  not  Sir  Gervaise 
belonged  to  a  religious  Order,  and  were  he  of  a  presuming 
disposition,  he  might  well  have  gathered  a  meaning  from  your 
words  far  beyond  what  you  intended,  and  have  even  enter- 
tained a  presumptuous  hope  that  you  were  not  indifferent  to 
his  merits.  In  the  present  case,  of  course,  no  harm  is  done ; 
still,  methinks  that  it  would  be  far  better  had  the  words  been 
unspoken.  Your  cousin  here  will,  I  am  sure,  agree  with  me." 

Caretto  did  not  speak,  but  stood  playing  with  his  moustache, 
waiting  for  Claudia's  reply.  The  girl  had  stood  with  down- 
cast eyes  while  her  mother  was  speaking. 

"  I  only  expressed  what  I  felt,  mother,"  she  said,  after  a 
pause,  "  and  I  do  not  think  that  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham  is  like- 
ly to  misunderstand  me.  It  seems  to  me  that  never  among 
those  whom  I  have  met  have  I  seen  one  so  worthy.  No  praises 
can  be  higher  than  those  with  which  my  cousin  has  spoken  of 
him.  He  has  rescued  him,  whom  we  dearly  love,  from  slav- 
ery ;  he  has  saved  Genoa  from  great  disaster,  and  many  towns 
and  villages  from  plunder  and  ruin.  I  do  indeed  feel  proud 
that  such  a  knight  should  wear  my  gage,  and,  were  there  no 


FESTIVITIES  273 

other  reason,  I  should  be  unwilling  that,  so  long  as  he  carried 
it,  another  should  possess  a  similar  one  from  me.  I  am  sure 
that  Sir  Gervaise  will  have  felt  that  this  was  the  meaning  of 
my  words  ;  I  wished  him  to  see  that  it  was  not  a  favour  light- 
ly given  by  a  girl  who  might,  a  few  weeks  hence,  bestow  a 
similar  one  upon  another,  but  was  a  gage  seriously  given  of 
the  honour  in  which  I  held  him." 

"Very  well  said,  Claudia,"  Caretto  broke  in,  before  the 
countess  could  reply.  "  I  warrant  me  the  young  knight  will 
not  misunderstand  your  gift,  and  that  he  will  prize  it  highly 
and  carry  it  nobly.  He  is  not  one  of  those  who  will  boast  of 
a  favour  and  display  it  all  times,  and,  except  perhaps  to  his 
friend  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt,  I  will  wager  he  never  tells  a  soul 
who  was  its  donor." 

When  Claudia  shortly  afterwards  left  the  room,  he  said  to 
the  countess, — 

"  Excuse  me  for  breaking  in,  Agatha,  but  I  felt  that  it  was 
much  better  to  agree  with  her,  and  not  to  make  overmuch  of 
the  matter  ;  she  is  just  of  an  age  to  make  some  one  a  hero,  and 
she  could  hardly  have  chosen  a  better  subject  for  her  worship. 
In  the  first  place,  he  is  a  knight  of  St.  John  ;  in  the  second, 
he  is  going  away  in  a  few  days,  perhaps  to-morrow,  and  may 
never  cross  her  path  again.  The  thought  of  him  will  prevent 
her  fancy  from  straying  for  a  time,  and  keep  her  heart-whole 
until  you  decide  on  a  suitor  for  her  hand." 

"  Nevertheless,  I  would  rather  that  it  had  not  been  so. 
Claudia  is  not  given  to  change,  and  this  may  last  long  enough 
to  cause  trouble  when  I  bring  forward  the  suitor  you  speak  of." 

"  Well,  in  any  case  it  might  be  worse,"  Caretto  said  philo- 
sophically. And  then,  with  a  smile  in  answer  to  her  look  of 
inquiry,  ' '  Knights  of  the  Order  have,  ere  now,  obtained  re- 
lease from  their  vows." 

"  Fabricius  !  "   the  countess  exclaimed,  in  a  shocked  voice. 

"Yes,  I  know,  Agatha,  that  the  child  is  one  of  the  richest 
heiresses  in  Italy,  but  for  that  very  reason  it  needs  not  that 


274  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE   WHITE   CROSS 

her  husband  should  have  wide  possessions.  In  all  other  respects 
you  could  wish  for  no  better.  He  will  assuredly  be  a  famous 
knight ;  he  is  the  sort  of  man  to  make  her  perfectly  happy  ; 
and,  lastly,  you  know  I  cannot  forget  that  I  owe  my  liberation 
from  slavery  to  him.  At  any  rate,  Agatha,  as  I  said  before,  he 
may  never  cross  her  path  again,  and  you  may,  a  year  or  two 
hence,  find  her  perfectly  amenable  to  your  wishes." 


CHAPTER  XVII 

CAPTURED 

UPON  the  following  day  the  doge  requested  Gervaise  to 
accompany  him  to  a  meeting  of  the  council.  Upon  en- 
tering the  grand  hall  he  found  not  only  the  members  of  the 
council  assembled  in  their  robes  of  office,  but  a  large  gather- 
ing of  the  nobles  and  principal  citizens  of  Genoa,  together 
with  the  knights  of  the  galley  whom,  under  Ralph  Harcourt's 
orders,  Gervaise  found,  to  his  surprise,  drawn  up  in  order 
across  the  Hall.  Here,  in  the  name  of  the  Republic,  Battista 
Fragoso  announced  to  him  that,  by  the  unanimous  decision 
of  the  council,  he  had  been  elected  a  noble  of  Genoa ;  an 
honour,  he  added,  on  only  one  or  two  previous  occasions  in 
the  history  of  the  Republic  bestowed  upon  any  but  of  prince- 
ly rank,  but  which  he  had  nobly  earned  by  the  great  service 
he  had  rendered  to  the  State.  His  name  was  then  inscribed 
in  the  book  containing  the  names  and  titles  of  the  nobles  of 
Genoa.  Next,  Battista  Fragoso  presented  him  with  a  superb 
suit  of  Milanese  armour,  as  his  own  personal  gift,  and  then 
with  a  casket  of  very  valuable  jewels,  as  the  gift  of  the  city 
of  Genoa.  Each  presentation  was  accompanied  by  the  plau- 
dits of  the  assembly,  and  by  the  no  less  warm  acclamations  of 
the  knights.  Ralph  was  then  called  forward,  and  presented 


CAPTURED  275 

with  a  suit  of  armour  but  little  inferior  to  that  given  to  Ger- 
vaise,  and  each  knight  received  a  heavy  gold  chain  of  the 
finest  workmanship  of  Genoa. 

Two  days  later  the  preparations  for  departure  were  com- 
plete, and  a  sufficient  number  of  men  were  engaged  to  man 
the  prizes.  This  charge,  also,  Genoa  took  upon  itself,  and 
put  on  board  much  stronger  crews  than  Gervaise  deemed 
necessary  for  the  navigation  of  the  ships.  The  weather  was 
fine  and  the  wind  favourable,  and  a  quick  passage  was  made 
to  Rhodes.  When  the  harbour  was  in  sight,  the  ships  were 
ordered  to  proceed  in  single  file,  the  galley  leading  the  way 
with  a  huge  banner  of  the  Order  floating  from  her  stern,  and 
smaller  flags  on  staffs  at  each  side.  It  was  not  until  they 
passed  by  the  two  forts  guarding  the  entrance  that  the  flags 
fluttering  at  the  mast-heads  of  the  prizes  afforded  to  those  on 
shore  an  intimation  of  the  event  that  had  taken  place,  and 
even  then  none  supposed  that  this  fleet  of  prizes  had  been 
taken  by  the  one  galley  that  headed  them. 

As  the  Sanfa  Barbara  slowly  rowed  up  the  harbour,  the 
State  barge  of  the  grand  master  put  off  to  meet  it,  and  D'Au- 
busson,  with  a  party  of  knights,  soon  stepped  on  board. 

"  Welcome  back,  Sir  Gervaise  !  although  I  little  expected 
to  see  you  return  so  soon.  What  is  the  meaning  of  this  pro- 
cession that  follows  you  ?  By  their  rig  and  appearance  they 
are  Moors,  but  how  they  come  to  be  thus  sailing  in  your  wake 
is  a  mystery  to  us  all." 

"They  are  Moors,  your  Excellency  ;  they  form  part  of  an 
expedition  fitted  out  by  the  corsairs  of  Algiers,  Tripoli,  Tunis, 
and  other  piratical  strongholds,  for  the  purpose  of  destroying 
the  commerce  and  ravaging  the  coasts  of  Western  Italy. 
Fortunately,  we  fell  in  with  a  ship  that  had  been  plundered 
by  three  of  them  on  their  way  north,  and  learned  from  the 
dying  captain,  who  was  the  only  one  of  her  crew  left  with 
life  on  board,  the  direction  they  were  taking,  and  something 
of  the  nature  of  the  expedition.  We  pursued  the  three  gal- 


276  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

leys,  came  up  with  them,  had  the  good  fortune  to  capture 
them,  and  then  had  the  delight  of  finding  among  their  rowers 
the  noble  knights,  Fabricius  Caretto,  Giacomo  Da  Vinci,  and 
Pietro  Forzi." 

The  grand  master,  and  the  knights  with  him,  uttered  an 
exclamation  of  joy,  and,  as  the  three  knights  named  stepped 
forward,  embraced  them  with  the  liveliest  pleasure. 

"  My  dear  Caretto,"  the  grand  master  exclaimed,  "it  is 
almost  a  resurrection,  for  we  have  all  long  mourned  you  as 
dead ;  and  your  return  to  us  at  the  present  time  is  indeed  fort- 
unate ;  for  upon  whose  judgment  and  aid  could  I  better  rely 
than  those  of  my  old  comrade  in  arms  ?  ' '  Then,  turning  to 
Gervaise,  he  went  on  :  "It  was  a  daring  and  brilliant  exploit 
indeed,  Sir  Gervaise,  and  in  due  time  honour  shall  be  paid  to 
you  and  your  brave  companions,  to  whom  and  to  you  I  now 
tender  the  thanks  of  the  Order.  But  tell  me  the  rest  briefly, 
for  I  would  fain  hear  from  these  noble  knights  and  old  friends 
the  story  of  what  has  befallen  them. ' ' 

"  My  tale  is  a  very  brief  one,  your  Highness.  The  Cavalier 
Caretto  sailed  at  once  in  a  swift  craft  from  the  south  of  Sar- 
dinia, to  carry  warnings  to  the  cities  on  the  coast  of  Italy  of 
the  danger  that  threatened  them,  and  in  order  that  some  war- 
galleys  might  be  despatched  by  Genoa  to  meet  the  corsair  fleet. 
During  his  absence  we  discovered  the  little  inlet  in  which  the 
pirates  lay  hidden,  waiting  doubtless  the  arrival  of  the  three 
ships  we  had  captured,  to  commence  operations.  On  the  re- 
turn of  the  knight  with  the  news  that  it  would  be  at  least  a 
fortnight  before  Genoa  could  fit  out  any  galleys,  and  fearing 
that  the  pirates  might  at  any  moment  put  to  sea,  we  procured 
some  small  Sardinian  craft,  and  fitted  them  as  fire-ships ;  with 
the  captives  we  had  rescued,  and  some  Sard  fishermen,  we 
manned  the  three  prizes,  distributing  the  knights  between 
them,  and  at  night  launched  the  fire-ships  against  the  corsairs, 
whose  ships  were  crowded  together.  Eleven  of  them  were 
burnt ;  six  we  captured  as  they  endeavoured  to  make  their  way 


CAPTURED  277 

out,  and  took  possession  of  four  others  whose  crews  had  run 
them  ashore  and  deserted  them.  None  escaped." 

Exclamations  of  astonishment  and  almost  of  incredulity 
broke  from  the  knights. 

"  And  is  it  possible,  Sir  Gervaise,  that  these  thirteen  vessels 
that  follow  you  are  all  prizes  captured  by  your  galley  alone  ?  ' ' 

"  It  is,  as  I  have  the  honour  to  tell  your  Highness.  But 
their  capture,  except  in  the  case  of  the  first  three,  was  due 
almost  solely  to  good  fortune  and  to  the  position  in  which  we 
found  them,  almost  incapable  of  defence." 

"  What  think  you,  knights  and  comrades?  "  the  grand  mas- 
ter said  to  his  companions.  ' '  There  were  some  of  you  who 
deemed  it  rash  to  entrust  a  galley  to  so  young  a  commander 
and  so  youthful  a  crew.  What  say  you  now  ?  Never  in  the 
annals  of  the  Order  has  such  a  sight  been  witnessed  as  that  of 
thirteen  prizes  being  brought  in  by  a  single  galley,  to  say 
naught  of  eleven  others  destroyed.  Caretto,  you  and  your  com- 
rades must  have  had  some  share  in  this  marvellous  victory." 

"  By  no  means,"  the  Italian  replied  ;  "  beyond  having  the 
honour  of  aiding  to  carry  out  the  orders  of  Sir  Gervaise 
Tresham,  the  commander  of  the  galley.  The  plan  was  wholly 
of  his  own  devising,  its  execution  solely  due  to  his  arrangement 
of  the  details,  and  that  without  the  slightest  suggestion  on  the 
part  of  myself  or  my  comrades.  I  will  presently  narrate  to 
you  the  whole  story;  it  will  come  better  from  my  lips  than 
from  those  of  Sir  Gervaise,  whose  disposition  is  to  wholly 
under-estimate  the  merit  of  the  action  he  has  performed.  But 
I  must  also  bear  testimony,  not  only  to  the  bravery  displayed 
by  Sir  Gervaise,  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt,  his  lieutenant,  and  every 
one  of  the  knights  his  crew,  but  to  the  admirable  discipline, 
order,  and  good  fellowship  on  board  the  galley,  which  would 
have  done  credit  to  the  most  experienced  commander  and  to 
the  most  veteran  knights  of  the  Order. ' ' 

The  grand  master  paused  a  moment,  and  then  said  in  a  loud 
voice, — 


278  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham,  Sir  Ralph  Harcourt,  and  knights 
of  the  seven  langues  of  the  Order — As  yet  I  can  hardly  appre- 
ciate the  full  extent  of  the  service  that  you  have  rendered.  I 
thanked  you  but  now  for  the  capture  of  three  corsairs ;  but 
what  can  I  say  when  I  learn  that  you  have  destroyed  or  taken 
a  whole  fleet  ?  I  invite  you  all  to  a  banquet  that  I  shall  hold 
to-night,  where  the  Cavalier  Caretto  will  relate  to  us  all  the 
details  of  this  marvellous  exploit. ' ' 

Within  a  few  minutes  after  the  return  of  the  grand  master 
and  his  party  ashore,  the  flags  of  the  Order  were  run  up  to  the 
flagstaff's  of  every  fort  and  bastion :  the  bells  of  the  churches 
chimed  out  a  triumphant  peal,  and  a  salute  was  fired  from  the 
guns  of  the  three  water  forts,  while  along  the  wall  facing  the 
port,  the  townspeople  waved  numberless  gay  flags  as  a  welcome 
to  the  galley.  Most  of  the  knights  went  ashore  at  once,  but 
Gervaise,  under  the  excuse  that  he  wished  to  see  that  every- 
thing was  in  order  before  landing,  remained  on  board  until  it 
was  time  to  go  to  the  banquet,  being  sure  that  by  that  time 
the  knights  would  have  fully  told  the  story  at  their  respective 
auberges,  and  that  there  would  be  no  more  questions  to  an- 
swer. The  banquet  differed  but  little  from  that  at  Genoa, 
and  Gervaise  was  heartily  glad  when  it  was  over. 

The  next  day  the  grand  master  sent  for  him. 

"  If  I  judge  rightly,  Sir  Gervaise,  the  thing  that  will  best 
please  you  at  present,  is  an  order  to  put  to  sea  again  at  once, 
to  conclude  the  visual  period  of  service  of  the  galley. ' ' 

"  It  is  indeed,"  Gervaise  replied  earnestly.  "  But  I  should 
be  glad,  sir,  if  you  will  allow  that  the  time  should  begin  to 
count  afresh  from  our  present  start.  We  have  really  had  but 
a  short  period  of  service,  for  we  wasted  a  week  at  Genoa,  and 
ten  days  on  our  journey  back  here,  so  that  we  have  had  really 
no  more  than  a  month's  active  service." 

"  Yes,  if  you  count  only  by  time,"  D'Aubusson  said,  with 
a  smile.  "  Reckoning  by  results,  you  have  done  a  good  five 
years'  cruise.  However,  so  small  a  request  can  certainly  be 


CAPTURED  279 

granted.  The  places  of  the-two  knights  who  were  killed,  and 
of  four  others  whose  wounds  are  reported  to  me  as  being  too 
severe  for  them  to  be  fit  for  service  for  some  time,  shall  be 
filled  up  at  once  from  the  langues  to  which  each  belonged. 
You  will  cruise  among  the  Western  islands,  whence  complaints 
have  reached  us  of  a  corsair  who  has  been  plundering  and 
burning.  Sometimes  he  is  heard  of  as  far  north  as  Negropont, 
at  others  he  is  off  the  south  of  the  Morea ;  then,  again,  we 
hear  of  him  among  the  Cyclades.  We  have  been  unwilling  to 
despatch  another  galley,  for  there  is  ample  employment  for 
every  one  here.  After  the  blow  you  have  struck  on  the  Moor- 
ish corsairs,  they  are  likely  to  be  quiet  for  a  little.  You  had 
best,  therefore,  try  for  a  time  if  you  cannot  come  across  this 
pirate.  You  must  let  me  know  how  much  you  paid  for  the 
vessels  you  used  as  fire-ships,  and  to  the  Sards  ;  this  is  an  ex- 
pense chargeable  to  the  general  service.  I  may  tell  you  that  to 
me  it  is  due  that  no  recognition  of  your  exploits,  such  as  that 
which  Genoa  bestowed  upon  you,  will  be  made.  At  the  coun- 
cil this  morning  it  was  urged  that  some  signal  mark  of  honour 
should  be  granted  ;  but  I  interposed,  saying  that  you  had  al- 
ready received  exceptional  promotion,  and  that  it  would  not 
be  for  your  good,  or  that  of  the  Order,  for  so  young  a  knight 
to  be  raised  to  an  official  position  of  a  character  usually  held 
by  seniors,  and  that  I  was  perfectly  sure  you  would  prefer  re- 
maining in  command  of  your  galley  to  any  promotion  what- 
ever that  would  retain  you  on  the  Island." 

"  Indeed  I  should,  your  Highness.  I  wish  to  gain  experience 
and  to  do  service  to  the  Order,  and  so  far  from  pleasing  me,  pro- 
motion would  trouble  and  distress  me,  and,  could  it  have  been 
done,  I  would  most  gladly  have  sent  home  the  prizes,  instead  of 
going  to  Genpa,  and  would  myself  have  continued  the  cruise." 

"  So  the  Cavalier  Caretto  told  me,"  the  grand  master  re- 
plied. "  Very  well,  then.  In  three  days  you  shall  set  out 
again.  The  admiral  tells  me  that  never  before  has  a  galley  re- 
turned with  the  slaves  in  such  good  health  and  condition,  and 


280  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

that  unquestionably  your  plan  of  erecting  an  awning  to  shel- 
ter them  from  the  midday  heat  and  the  night  dews  has  had  a 
most  beneficial  effect  on  their  health ;  he  has  recommended 
its  general  adoption." 

Three  days  later  the  Santa  Barbara  again  left  port,  and 
was  soon  upon  her  station.  For  some  weeks  she  cruised  back- 
wards and  forwards  along  the  coast  and  among  the  islands. 
They  often  heard  of  the  pirate-ship,  but  all  their  efforts  to  find 
her  were  unavailing. 

One  evening  there  were  signs  of  a  change  of  weather,  and 
by  morning  it  was  blowing  a  furious  gale  from  the  north  ;  in 
spite  of  the  efforts  of  the  rowers,  the  galley  narrowly  escaped 
being  driven  ashore  ;  but  she  at  last  gained  the  shelter  of  an 
island,  and  anchored  under  its  lee,  the  slaves  being  utterly 
worn  out  by  continuous  exertion.  As  soon  as  the  gale  abated 
they  again  put  to  sea,  and,  after  proceeding  for  some  miles, 
saw  a  ship  cast  up  on  shore.  Some  people  could  be  made  out 
on  board  of  her,  and  a  white  flag  was  raised. 

"  She  must  have  been  driven  ashore  during  the  gale,"  Ger- 
vaise  said.  "  We  will  row  in  to  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
of  her  and  see  what  we  can  do  for  them." 

As  soon  as  the  anchor  was  dropped  a  boat  was  lowered. 

' '  I  will  go  myself,  Ralph,  for  I  shall  be  glad  to  set  my  foot 
on  shore  again.  There  must  be  people  on  the  island  ;  I  won- 
der none  of  them  have  come  to  the  aid  of  those  poor  fellows. 
I  suppose  the  villages  are  on  the  other  side  of  the  island,  and 
they  have  not  yet  heard  of  the  wreck." 

Gervaise  asked  three  of  the  knights  to  accompany  him,  and 
the  boat,  rowed  by  galley-slaves,  was  soon  on  its  way.  All 
were  glad  at  the  change  afforded  to  the  monotony  of  their  life 
on  board,  and  at  the  prospect  of  a  scamper  on  shore. 

There  were  but  five  or  six  men  to  be  seen  on  the  deck  of 
the  wreck,  and  these  had,  as  the  boat  approached,  come  down 
to  the  rocks  as  if  to  meet  those  who  came  to  their  aid ;  but  as 
the  knights  leapt  out,  they  threw  themselves  suddenly  upon 


CAPTURED  281 

them  with  knives  and  scimitars  that  had  hitherto  been  con- 
cealed beneath  their  garments,  while  at  the  same  moment  a 
crowd  of  men  appeared  on  the  deck  of  the  ship,  and,  leaping 
down,  ran  forward  with  drawn  swords.  Two  of  the  knights 
fell  dead  before  they  had  time  to  draw  their  weapons.  The 
third  shook  off  his  two  assailants,  and  for  a  minute  kept  them 
both  at  bay  ;  but  others,  rushing  up,  cut  him  down. 

Gervaise  had  received  a  slight  wound  before  he  realised  what 
was  happening.  He  snatched  his  dagger  from  its  sheath,  and 
struck  down  one  assailant ;  but  ere  he  could  raise  it  to  strike 
again,  another  leapt  on  to  his  back,  and  clung  there  until  the 
rest  rushed  up,  when  he  shouted,  "  Take  him  alive  !  take  him 
alive  !  ' '  and,  throwing  down  their  weapons,  half  a  dozen  of  the 
pirates  flung  themselves  upon  Gervaise,  and  strove  to  pull  him 
to  the  ground,  until  at  last,  in  spite  of  his  desperate  resistance, 
they  succeeded  in  doing  so.  His  armour  was  hastily  stripped 
off,  his  hands  and  feet  bound,  and  then  at  the  orders  of  the 
pirate  who  had  leapt  on  his  back,  and  who  was  evidently  the 
captain,  half-a-dozen  men  lifted  him  on  to  their  shoulders.  As 
they  did  so  four  guns  from  the  galley  flashed  out,  and  the  balls 
flew  overhead.  The  pirates,  who  had  already  begun  to  quar- 
rel over  the  armour  and  arms  of  the  fallen  knights,  at  once 
took  to  their  heels,  followed  by  the  galley-slaves  from  the  boat. 

"  Make  haste,"  the  captain  said  to  the  men  carrying  Ger- 
vaise. "  They  are  lowering  their  boats;  we  must  be  under 
way  before  they  come  up. ' ' 

In  a  minute  or  two  Gervaise  was  set  down  on  his  feet,  the 
cords  round  his  legs  were  cut,  and  he  was  made  to  hurry  along 
with  his  captors.  In  a  short  time  an  inlet  was  reached,  and 
here  Gervaise  saw,  to  his  mortification,  the  pirate  craft  for 
which  the  Santa  Barbara  had  in  vain  been  searching.  As 
soon  as  the  party  were  all  on  board,  the  ropes  by  which  she 
was  moored  to  two  trees  were  thrown  off,  the  great  sails 
hoisted,  and  she  sailed  boldly  out.  Although  the  gale  had  en- 
tirely abated,  there  was  still  a  brisk  wind  blowing,  and  it  was 


-!Sl>  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

evident  to  the  captain  of  the  corsair  that  under  such  circum- 
stances he  could  out-sail  the  galley  that  had  long  been  search- 
ing for  him  ;  when,  therefore,  the  Santa  Barbara  came  in 
sight,  just  as  he  and  his  crew  had  finished  stripping  the  wreck 
of  its  contents,  the  idea  had  occurred  to  him  to  attempt  to  en- 
tice some  of  the  knights  to  land. 

As  soon  as  the  vessel  was  under  way  he  abused  his  followers 
hotly  for  not  having  obeyed  his  orders  to  capture  the  knights 
without  bloodshed ;  but  they  pleaded  that  it  was  as  much  as 
they  had  been  able  to  do  to  capture  Gervaise  in  that  way,  and 
that  they  could  never  have  overcome  the  four  together,  before 
the  boats  would  have  had  time  to  come  from  the  ship. 

Gervaise  had  been  told  to  sit  down  with  his  back  to  a  mast 
and  in  this  position  he  could,  when  the  vessel  heeled  over  to 
the  breeze,  obtain  a  view  of  the  sea.  It  was  with  a  feeling  of 
bitter  mortification  and  rage  that  he  saw  the  galley  lying  but 
half  a  mile  away,  as  the  corsair  issued  from  the  inlet.  A  mo- 
ment later  he  heard  a  gun  fired,  and  saw  the  signal  hoisted  to 
recall  the  boats. 

"  If  the  wind  had  been  favourable,"  the  captain  said  to  his 
mate,  "  we  would  have  borne  down  upon  her,  and  could  have 
reached  and  captured  her  before  the  boats  got  back,  for  you 
may  be  sure  that  they  have  landed  almost  all  their  men.  How- 
ever, we  can't  get  there  against  the  wind,  and  we  will  now 
say  good-bye  to  them." 

Gervaise  knew  well  that  at  the  pace  they  were  running 
through  the  water  the  galley  would  have  no  chance  whatever 
of  overtaking  her,  and  that,  ere  the  knights  came  on  board 
again,  she  would  be  already  two  or  three  miles  away.  A  point 
of  land  soon  concealed  the  galley  from  view,  and  when  he 
caught  sight  of  her,  as  she  rounded  the  point,  she  was  but  a 
speck  in  the  distance. 

They  passed  several  islands  in  the  course  of  the  day,  chang- 
ing their  direction  to  a  right  angle  to  that  which  they  had  at 
first  pursued,  as  soon  as  they  were  hidden  from  the  sight  of  the 


CAPTURED  283 

galley  by  an  intervening  island.  As  night  came  on  they  anch- 
ored in  a  little  bay  on  the  coast  of  the  Morea.  The  sails 
being  furled,  the  sailors  made  a  division  of  the  booty  they  had 
captured  on  the  island,  and  of  the  portable  property  found  on 
board  the  wreck.  A  gourd  full  of  water  was  placed  to  Ger- 
vaise's  lips  by  one  of  the  men  of  a  kinder  disposition  than  the 
rest.  He  drank  it  thankfully,  for  he  was  parched  with  thirst 
excited  by  the  pain  caused  by  the  tightness  with  which  he 
had  been  bound. 

He  slept  where  he  sat.  All  night  four  men  remained  on 
guard,  although  from  what  he  heard  they  had  no  fear  what- 
ever of  being  overtaken.  In  the  morning  his  arms  were  un- 
bound, and  they  stripped  off  his  tunic  and  shirt.  They  had 
evidently  respect  for  his  strength,  for  before  loosing  his  arms 
they  tightly  fastened  his  ankles  together.  The  removal  of  his 
shirt  exposed  Claudia's  gift  to  view. 

"  Take  that  from  him  and  give  it  to  me,"  the  captain  said. 

As  the  two  men  approached,  Gervaise  seized  one  in  each 
hand,  dashed  them  against  each  other,  and  hurled  them  on 
the  deck.  But  the  exertion  upset  his  equilibrium,  and  after 
making  a  vain  effort  to  recover  it,  he  fell  heavily  across  them. 
The  captain  stooped  over  him,  and,  before  he  could  recover 
himself,  snatched  the  chain  from  his  neck. 

"You  are  a  stout  fellow,"  he  said,  laughing,  "and  will 
make  a  fine  slave.  What  have  you  got  here  that  you  are  ready 
to  risk  your  life  for  ?  "  He  looked  at  the  little  chain  and  its 
pendant  with  an  air  of  disappointment.  "  'Tis  worth  but 
little,"  he  said,  showing  it  to  his  mate.  "  I  would  not  give 
five  ducats  for  it  in  the  market.  It  must  be  a  charm,  or  a  knight 
would  never  carry  it  about  with  him  and  prize  it  so  highly. 
It  may  be  to  things  like  this  the  Christians  owe  their  luck." 

"  It  has  not  brought  him  luck  this  time,"  the  mate  observed 
with  a  laugh. 

' '  Even  a  charm  cannot  always  bring  good  luck,  but  at  any 
rate  I  will  try  it ;  "  and  he  put  it  round  his  neck  just  as  Ger- 


284 

vaise  had  worn  it.  The  latter  was  now  unbound,  and  per- 
mitted to  move  about  the  deck.  The  strength  he  had  shown 
in  the  struggle  on  shore,  and  the  manner  in  which  he  had 
hurled,  bound  as  he  was,  two  of  their  comrades  to  the  deck, 
had  won  for  him  the  respect  of  his  captors,  and  he  was  there- 
fore allowed  privileges  not  granted  to  the  seamen  of  the  vessel 
that  had  had  the  ill  fortune  to  be  cast  on  shore  so  close  to  the 
spot  where  the  corsair  was  hiding.  These  had  been  seized, 
driven  to  the  ship,  and  having  been  stripped  of  the  greater 
portion  of  their  clothes,  shut  down  in  the  hold. 

Although  angry  that  but  one  out  of  the  four  who  landed 
had  been  captured,  the  captain  was  in  a  good  humour  at  hav- 
ing tricked  his  redoubtable  foes,  and  was  disposed  to  treat 
Gervaise  with  more  consideration  than  was  generally  given  to 
captives.  The  latter  had  not  spoken  a  word  of  Turkish  from 
the  time  he  was  captured,  and  had  shaken  his  head  when  first 
addressed  in  that  language.  No  suspicion  was  therefore  enter- 
tained that  he  had  any  knowledge  of  it,  and  the  Turks  con- 
versed freely  before  him. 

"Where  think  you  we  had  better  sell  him?"  the  mate 
asked  the  captain,  when  Gervaise  was  leaning  against  the 
bulwark  watching  the  land,  a  short  quarter  of  a  mile  away. 
"  He  ought  to  fetch  a  good  ransom." 

"  Ay,  but -who  would  get  it?  You  know  how  it  was  with 
one  that  Ibrahim  took  two  years  ago.  First  there  were 
months  of  delay,  then,  when  the  ransom  was  settled,  the  pasha 
took  four-fifths  of  it  for  himself,  and  Ibrahim  got  far  less  than 
he  would  have  done  had  he  sold  him  as  a  slave.  The  pashas 
here,  and  the  sultans  of  the  Moors,  are  all  alike  ;  if  they  once 
meddle  in  an  affair  they  take  all  the  profit,  and  think  they  do 
well  by  giving  you  a  tithe  of  it.  There  are  plenty  of  wealthy 
Moors  who  are  ready  to  pay  well  for  a  Christian  slave,  espe- 
cially when  he  is  a  good-looking  young  fellow  such  as  this  He 
will  fetch  as  much  as  all  those  eight  sailors  below.  They  are 
only  worth  their  labour,  while  this  youngster  will  command  a 


CAPTURED  285 

fancy  price.  I  know  a  dozen  rich  Moors  in  Tripoli  or  Tunis 
who  would  be  glad  to  have  him  ;  and  we  agreed  that  we  would 
run  down  to  the  African  coast  for  awhile,  for  that  galley  has 
been  altogether  too  busy  of  late  for  our  comfort,  and  will  be  all 
the  more  active  after  this  little  affair  ;  besides,  people  in  these 
islands  have  got  so  scared  that  one  can't  get  within  ten  miles  of 
any  of  them  now  without  seeing  their  signal  smokes  rising  on 
the  hills,  and  finding,  when  they  land,  the  villages  deserted 
and  stripped  of  everything  worth  carrying  away. ' ' 

This  news  was  a  disappointment  to  Gervaise.  He  had  cal- 
culated that  he  would  be  sold  at  one  of  the  Levant  ports,  and 
had  thought  that  with  his  knowledge  of  Turkish  he  should 
have  no  great  difficulty  in  escaping  from  any  master  into  whose 
hands  he  might  fall,  and  taking  his  chance  of  either  seizing  a 
fishing-boat,  or  of  making  his  way  in  a  trading  ship  to  some 
district  where  the  population  was  a  mixed  one,  and  where 
trade  was  winked  at  between  the  merchants  there,  and  those 
at  some  of  the  Greek  towns.  To  escape  from  Tunis  or  Tripoli 
would  be  far  more  difficult ;  there,  too,  he  would  be  beyond 
the  reach  of  the  good  offices  of  Suleiman  Ali,  who  would,  he 
was  sure,  have  done  all  in  his  power  to  bring  about  his  re- 
lease. Of  one  thing  he  was  determined  :  he  would  not  return 
to  Rhodes  without  making  every  possible  effort  to  recover 
Claudia's  gage,  as  he  considered  it  absolutely  incumbent  on 
him  as  a  knight  to  guard,  as  something  sacred,  a  gift  so  be- 
stowed. The  fancy  of  the  corsair  to  retain  the  jewel  as  a 
charm  he  regarded  as  a  piece  of  the  greatest  good  fortune. 
Had  it  been  thrown  among  the  common  spoil,  he  would  never 
have  known  to  which  of  the  crew  it  had  fallen  at  the  division, 
still  less  have  traced  what  became  of  it  afterwards ;  whereas 
now,  for  some  time,  at  any  rate,  it  was  likely  to  remain  in  the 
captain's  possession. 

Had  it  not  been  for  that,  he  would  have  attempted  to  es- 
cape at  the  first  opportunity,  and  such  an  opportunity  could 
not  fail  to  present  itself  ere  long,  for  he  had  but  to  manage  to 


286  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

possess  himself  of  Moslem  garments  to  be  able  to  move  about 
unquestioned  in  any  Turkish  town.  When  it  became  dark  he 
was  shut  up  in  the  hold,  which  was,  he  found,  crowded  with 
captives,  as,  in  addition  to  the  crew  of  the  wreck,  between 
forty  and  fifty  Greeks,  for  the  most  part  boys  and  young  girls, 
had  been  carried  off  from  the  villages  plundered.  It  was 
pitch  dark  below,  although  the  scuttle  had  been  left  open  in 
order  to  allow  a  certain  amount  of  air  to  reach  the  captives ; 
Gervaise,  therefore,  felt  his  way  about  cautiously,  and  lay 
down  as  soon  as  he  found  a  clear  space.  Save  an  occasional 
moan  or  curse,  and  the  panting  of  those  suffering  from  the  heat 
and  closeness  of  the  crowded  hold,  all  was  still  The  majority 
of  the  captives  had  been  some  time  in  their  floating  prison, 
and  their  first  poignant  grief  had  settled  down  into  a  dull  and 
despairing  acceptance  of  their  fate  ;  the  sailors,  newly  captured, 
had  for  hours  raved  and  cursed,  but,  worn  out  by  their  strug- 
gle with  the  elements,  and  their  rage  and  grief,  they  had  now 
fallen  asleep. 

It  was  long  before  Gervaise  dozed  off.  He  was  furious  with 
himself  for  having  fallen  into  the  trap  ;  if  he  had,  as  he  said 
to  himself,  lain  off  the  beach  in  the  boat,  and  questioned  the 
supposed  shipwrecked  sailors,  their  inability  to  reply  to  him 
would  have  at  once  put  him  on  his  guard ;  as  it  was,  he  had 
walked  into  the  snare  as  carelessly  and  confidently  as  a  child 
might  have  done.  Even  more  than  his  own  captivity,  he  re- 
gretted the  death  of  his  three  comrades,  which  he  attributed 
to  his  own  want  of  care. 

The  next  morning  he  was  again  allowed  on  deck.  The  ves- 
sel was  under  way,  and  her  head  was  pointing  south.  To  his 
surprise  some  of  the  crew  gave  him  a  friendly  greeting ;  he 
was  unable  to  understand  a  manner  so  at  variance  with  their 
hatred  to  the  Christians,  until  one  of  them  said  to  him  in  a 
mixture  of  Greek  and  Italian, — 

"  We  have  heard  from  our  countrymen  who  were  in  the 
boat  with  you,  that  they  received  much  kindness  at  your  hands, 


CAPTURED  287 

and  that  of  all  the  Christians  they  had  served  under,  you  were 
the  kindest  master.  Therefore,  it  is  but  right  now  Allah  has 
decreed  that  you  in  turn  should  be  a  slave  to  the  true  believ- 
ers, that  you  should  receive  the  same  mercy  you  gave  to  Mos- 
lems when  they  were  in  your  power." 

The  captain  came  up  as  the  man  was  speaking.  He  talked 
for  a  time  to  the  sailor,  who  then  turned  again  to  Gervaise. 
"  The  captain  says  that  he  is  told  you  were  the  commander  of 
that  galley ;  he  has  questioned  the  eight  men  separately,  and 
they  all  tell  the  same  story  :  and  yet  he  cannot  understand 
how  so  young  a  man  should  command  a  galley  manned  by 
warriors  famous  for  their  deeds  of  arms,  even  among  us  who 
are  their  foes." 

"This  galley  was  an  exception,"  Gervaise  replied;  "the 
knights  on  board  were  all  young,  as  they  could  be  better  spared 
than  those  more  experienced,  at  a  time  when  your  sultan  is 
known  to  be  preparing  for  an  attack  on  Rhodes." 

The  captain  was  silent  for  a  minute  when  this  was  inter- 
preted to  him ;  he  had  at  the  time  noticed  and  wondered  at 
the  youth  of  the  four  knights,  and  the  explanation  seemed  to 
him  a  reasonable  one. 

"  I  wish  I  had  known  it,"  he  said  after  a  pause ;  "for  had 
I  done  so,  I  would  have  fought  and  captured  her  yesterday ;  I 
have  half  a  mind  to  go  back  and  seek  her  now." 

He  called  up  one  of  the  ex-slaves  who  was  a  native  of  Trip- 
oli, and  who  had  now  taken  his  place  as  a  member  of  the  crew, 
and  asked  him  a  number  of  questions.  Gervaise  felt  uncom- 
fortable while  the  man  was  answering.  Fortunately,  his  row- 
ers had  agreed  to  say  nothing  whatever  of  the  destruction  of 
the  corsair  fleet,  of  which  no  word  had  as  yet  reached  the 
pirates,  deeming  that,  in  their  anger  at  the  news,  the  pirates 
might  turn  upon  them  for  the  part  that  they  had,  however  in- 
voluntarily, borne  in  it.  % 

As  soon  as  he  perceived  that  the  captain  entertained  the 
idea  of  returning  to  engage  the  galley,  the  man  felt  that  if  he 


288  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE   WHITE    CROSS 

were  to  avoid  a  return  into  captivity  he  must  deter  him  from 
taking  such  a  step.  He  therefore,  in  answer  to  his  questions 
as  to  the  strength  of  the  crew  of  the  galley  and  the  fighting 
powers  of  the  knights,  reported  the  capture  of  the  three  ves- 
sels. The  captain  listened  almost  incredulously  to  his  state- 
ment, and,  calling  up  other  two  of  the  men,  questioned  them 
also  as  to  the  occurrence.  Having  heard  them,  he  turned 
away  and  paced  the  deck,  in  evident  anger ;  however,  he  gave 
no  instructions  for  a  change  of  course,  and,  to  the  great  satis- 
faction of  the  eight  rescued  slaves,  the  vessel  continued  her 
course  southward. 

As  they  neared  the  African  coast,  Gervaise  kept  an  eager 
look-out,  in  hopes  that  Visconti's  galley  might  appear  in  sight. 
The  captain's  temper  had  not  recovered  from  the  effect  of  the 
news  of  the  capture  of  three  Moorish  vessels  by  the  galley 
commanded  by  Gervaise,  and  the  latter,  seeing  the  mood  he 
was  in,  kept  forward  so  as  to  avoid  coming  in  contact  with 
him.  He  had  early  taken  the  opportunity  of  saying  to  one  of 
the  released  galley-slaves,  "  I  pray  you,  if  you  have  any  feel- 
ing of  kindness  towards  me  for  the  efforts  I  made  to  alleviate 
your  condition,  say  no  word  of  my  knowledge  of  Turkish,  and 
ask  the  others  also  to  remain  silent  on  this  point." 

The  man  had  nodded,  and  the  request  was  observed  by 
them  all. 

The  captain's  irritation  showed  itself  in  his  treatment  of 
the  other  captives.  These  were  brought  up  every  day  from 
the  hold,  and  kept  on  deck  until  dark,  as  the  price  they  would 
fetch  in  the  slave-market  in  Tripoli  would  depend  greatly  upon 
their  health  and  appearance ;  but  when  the  captain  came  near 
them  he  several  times  struck  them  brutally,  if  they  happened 
to  be  in  his  way.  Gervaise  had  the  greatest  difficulty  in  re- 
straining his  indignation,  and,  indeed,  only  did  so  because  he 
felt  that  his  interference  would  but  make  things  worse  for 
them.  When  at  last  the  ship  cast  anchor  off  Tripoli,  the  cap- 
tain ordered  the  boats  to  be  lowered.  As  he  walked  towards 


CAPTURED  289 

the  gangway,  he  happened  to  push  against  one  of  the  captives, 
a  Greek  girl  of  some  ten  years  of  age.  With  an  angry  ex- 
clamation he  struck  her  to  the  deck.  Gervaise  sprang  forward. 

"  You  brute  !  "  he  exclaimed  in  English.  "  I  have  a  good 
mind  to  throw  you  overboard,  and  will  do  so  the  next  time 
you  strike  one  of  these  children  without  cause." 

Infuriated  by  Gervaise's  interference  and  threatening  atti- 
tude, the  corsair  drew  his  long  knife ;  but  before  he  could 
strike,  Gervaise  caught  his  wrist ;  the  knife  fell  from  his  hand, 
and  Gervaise  kicked  it  through  the  open  gangway  into  the  sea. 
The  captain  shouted  to  his  men  to  seize  the  Christian,  but  the 
young  knight's  blood  was  up  now.  The  first  man  who  came 
at  him  he  seized  by  the  sash  round  his  waist,  and  threw  over- 
board ;  the  two  next  he  stretched  on  the  deck  with  blows  from 
his  clenched  fist.  Some  of  the  others  now  drew  their  weapons, 
but  the  captain  shouted  to  them  to  sheath  them. 

"  Fools  !  "  he  yelled.  "Is  it  not  enough  that  your  coward- 
ice has  already  cost  us  the  lives  of  three  knights,  whose  capture 
"would  have  brought  us  a  big  sum  ?  Throw  him  down  and 
bind  him.  What !  are  fifty  of  you  afraid  of  one  unarmed  man  ? 
No  wonder  these  Christians  capture  our  ships,  if  this  is  the 
mettle  of  our  crews  !  ' ' 

Goaded  by  his  words,  the  men  made  a  general  rush  upon 
Gervaise,  and,  in  spite  of  his  desperate  efforts,  threw  him  on 
to  the  deck  and  bound  him  ;  then  the  captain,  seizing  a  heavy 
stick  in  his  left  hand,  his  right  being  still  powerless,  showered 
blows  upon  him  until  Gervaise  almost  lost  consciousness. 
"Throw  some  water  over  the  dog,"  the  corsair  said,  as  he 
threw  down  the  stick,  panting  with  his  exertions ;  and  then, 
without  waiting  to  see  if  his  order  was  obeyed,  he  took  his 
place  in  the  boat,  and  was  rowed  ashore. 

As  soon  as  he  had  left,  three  or  four  of  the  ex-galley-slaves 
carried  Gervaise  into  the  shade  of  the  sail.  The  sailors,  several 
of  whom  bore  signs  of  the  late  struggle,  looked  on  sullenly, 
but  offered  no  opposition  when  the  men  took  off  the  ropes  and 


290  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

raised  him  into  a  sitting  posture  against  the  mast.  He  had  not 
entirely  lost  consciousness,  and  was  now  fast  recovering  himself. 

"  Is  there  anything  we  can  do  for  you?  "  one  of  the  men 
asked  in  Italian. 

"  No  ;  I  shall  soon  be  all  right  again,  although  I  am  bruised 
all  over,  and  shall  be  stiff  for  a  day  or  two.  You  had  best 
leave  me  now,  or  you  will  incur  the  enmity  of  these  fellows. ' ' 

Gervaise  was  indeed  bruised  from  his  neck  to  his  heels. 
Even  in  his  passion  the  pirate  had  avoided  striking  him  on  the 
head,  as  a  disfiguring  mark  on  the  face  would  diminish  his 
value.  Sitting  there,  he  congratulated  himself  that  he  had  been 
beaten  with  a  stick  and  not  with  a  whip ;  a  stick  is  a  weapon, 
and  he  did  not  feel  the  same  sense  of  dishonour  that  he  would 
have  experienced  had  he  been  beaten  with  a  whip.  That  such 
might  be  his  lot  in  slavery  he  recognised.  The  backs  of  Caretto 
and  his  two  companions  were  seamed  with  the  marks  inflicted 
by  the  gang-master's  whip,  and  he  could  scarce  hope  to  escape 
the  same  treatment ;  but  at  present  he  hardly  felt  a  slave. 
There  was  another  reflection  that  to  some  extent  mitigated  the 
pain  of  his  bruises ;  the  pirate  captain  held  his  treasured  gage, 
and  it  was  his  fixed  determination  to  recover  it.  The  man  had 
at  first  in  a  rough  way  treated  him  fairly,  and  had  allowed  him 
more  liberty  than  the  other  captives,  and  he  would  have  felt 
reluctant  to  take  extreme  measure  against  him  to  recover  the 
gage.  Now  he  was  not  only  free  from  any  sense  of  obligation, 
but  had  a  heavy  score  to  settle  with  him. 

After  a  time  he  got  up  and  walked  stiffly  and  painfully  up  and 
down  the  deck,  knowing  that  this  was  the  best  plan  to  prevent 
the  limbs  from  stiffening.  The  corsair  did  not  return  until  night 
set  in  ;  he  was  accompanied  by  an  Arab,  whose  dress  and  ap- 
pearance showed  that  he  was  a  person  of  importance.  The 
other  slaves  had  all  been  sent  below,  but  Gervaise  still  remained 
on  deck,  as  the  mate  had  not  cared  to  risk  another  conflict  by 
giving  him  orders  in  the  absence  of  the  captain.  As  the  pirate 
stepped  on  deck  he  ordered  some  torches  to  be  brought. 


CAPTURED  291 

"This  is  the  Christian  I  spoke  of,"  he  said  to  the  Arab, 
poiating  to  Gervaise,  who  was  leaning  carelessly  against  the 
bulwark.  ' '  He  is,  as  you  see,  capable  of  hard  work  of  any 
kind ;  his  strength  is  prodigious,  for  it  took  ten  of  my  best 
men  to  bind  him  this  morning." 

"  Why  did  you  wish  to  bind  him  ?  "  the  Arab  asked  cold- 
ly ;  "  you  told  me  that  although  so  strong  he  was  of  a  quiet 
disposition,  and  would  make  a  good  household  slave." 

"  I  struck  a  slave  girl  who  stood  in  my  way,"  the  captain 
said,  "  and  he  came  at  me  so  suddenly  that  I  had  to  call  upon 
the  men  to  bind  him.  He  threw  one  of  them  overboard,  and 
with  his  naked  hands  knocked  down  two  others ;  and,  as  I  have 
told  you,  it  took  all  the  efforts  of  eight  or  ten  more  before  they 
could  overcome  him." 

The  Arab  took  a  torch  from  one  of  the  sailors,  walked  across 
to  Gervaise,  who  was  naked  from  the  waist  upwards,  his  upper 
garments  having  been  torn  into  shreds  in  the  struggle,  and  ex- 
amined him  closely. 

"  And  then  you  beat  him,"  he  said,  turning  to  the  captain. 

"  Certainly  I  beat  him.  Do  you  think  that  a  slave  is  to 
mutiny  on  board  my  ship,  and  escape  unpunished  ?  " 

The  Arab,  without  replying,  again  inspected  Gervaise. 

"  You  ask  a  large  sum  for  him,"  he  said. 

"  I  should  ask  twice  as  much,"  the  captain  replied,  "  if  it 
were  not  for  the  regulation  that  one  slave  from  each  cargo 
brought  in  belongs  to  trie  sultan,  and  his  officers  would  as  a 
matter  of  course  choose  this  fellow,  for  the  others  are  merely 
such  as  are  sold  in  the  market  every  day.  This  man  is  one  of 
the  accursed  Order  of  Rhodes,  and  would  fetch  a  ransom  many 
times  greater  than  the  sum  I  ask  for  him,  only  I  have  not  the 
time  to  wait  for  months  until  the  affair  could  be  arranged." 

"And,  moreover,  Hassan,"  the  Arab  said  grimly,  "it  has 
doubtless  not  escaped  you  that  as  the  Sultan  of  Turkey  is  fit- 
ting out  an  expedition  to  destroy  the  community  of  Rhodes,  the 
chance  of  their  ransoming  their  comrade  is  a  very  slight  one. 


292  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  Threatened  men  live  long,"  the  captain  said.  "  The  sul- 
tan has  been  talking  of  attacking  them  for  years,  and  some- 
thing has  always  happened  to  prevent  his  carrying  out  his  in- 
tention. It  may  be  the  same  again." 

"  I  will  take  him, ' '  the  Arab  said  shortly.  ' '  Here  is  a  purse 
with  the  sum  you  named  ;  count  it,  and  see  that  it  is  right." 

As  he  stood  apart  while  the  pirate  counted  out  the  money, 
the  eight  released  slaves  came  up  in  a  body,  and  one  of  them, 
bowing  low  before  the  merchant,  said, — 

"  My  lord,  we  have  long  been  slaves  of  the  Christian  knights 
at  Rhodes,  and  have  worked  in  their  galleys.  We  were  res- 
cued the  other  day  when  this  knight  was  taken  prisoner.  Our 
life  has  been  a  hard  one.  We  have  borne  toil,  and  hardship, 
and  blows,  the  heat  of  the  sun  by  day,  and  the  damp  by  night, 
but  we  would  humbly  represent  to  you  that  since  we  were 
placed  in  the  galley  commanded  by  this  knight  our  lot  has  been 
made  bearable  by  his  humanity  and  kindness.  He  erected  an 
awning  to  shade  us  from  the  sun's  rays,  and  to  shelter  us  from  the 
night  dews.  He  provided  good  food  for  us.  He  saw  that  we 
were  not  worked  beyond  our  strength,  and  he  forbade  us  being 
struck,  unless  for  good  cause.  Therefore,  my  lord,  now  that 
misfortune  has  fallen  upon  him,  we  venture  to  represent  to  you 
the  kindness  with  which  he  has  treated  us,  in  the  hope  that  it 
may  please  you  to  show  him  such  mercy  as  he  showed  to  us. ' ' 

"You  have  done  well,"  the  Arab  said,  "and  your  words 
shall  not  be  forgotten.  When  you  land  to-morrow,  inquire 
for  the  house  of  Isaac  Ben  Ibyn.  You  are  doubtless  penniless, 
and  I  may  be  able  to  obtain  employment  for  those  of  you  who 
may  stop  at  Tripoli,  and  to  assist  those  who  desire  to  take 
passage,  to  their  homes  elsewhere.  We  are  commanded  to  be 
grateful  to  those  who  befriend  us,  and  as  you  have  shown 
yourselves  to  be  so,  it  is  right  that  I,  an  humble  servant  of  the 
Great  One,  should  in  His  name  reward  you." 

Motioning  to  Gervaise  to  follow  him,  the  Arab  stepped  into 
his  boat.  Gervaise  turned  to  the  men,  and  said  in  Italian,— 


A   KIND    MASTER  293 

"  Thanks,  my  friends,  you  have  well  discharged  any  debt 
that  you  may  think  you  owe  me.  Will  you  tell  that  villain  " 
— and  he  pointed  to  the  captain  threateningly — "  I  warn  him 
that  some  day  I  will  kill  him  like  a  dog  ?  ' '  Then,  turning,  he 
stepped  into  the  bow  of  the  boat,  and  the  two  men  who  rowed 
it  at  once  pushed  off. 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

A    KIND    MASTER 

WHEN  the  boat  reached  the  shore  the  Arab  handed  a  long 
bernouse  to  Gervaise,  signed  to  him  to  pull  the  hood 
well  over  his  head,  and  then  led  the  way  through  the  streets 
until  he  stopped  at  a  large  house,  standing  in  a  quiet  quarter 
of  the  town.  He  struck  on  the  door  with  his  hand,  and  it 
was  at  once  opened  by  a  black  slave. 

"  Call  Muley,"  the  Arab  said. 

The  slave  hurried  away,  and  returned  in  a  minute  with  a 
man  somewhat  past  middle  age,  and  dressed  in  a  style  that  in- 
dicated that  he  was  a  trusted  servant. 

"Muley,"  his  master  said,  "I  have  bought  this  Christian 
who  has  been  brought  in  by  Hassan  the  corsair.  He  is  one  of 
the  knights  who  are  the  terrors  of  our  coasts,  but  is,  from  what 
I  hear,  of  a  kind  and  humane  disposition.  I  am  told  that  he 
was  a  commander  of  one  of  their  galleys,  and  though  I  should 
not  have  believed  it  had  I  only  Hassan's  word,  I  have  heard 
from  others  that  it  was  so.  My  wife  has  long  desired  to  have 
a  Christian  slave,  and  as  Allah  has  blessed  my  efforts  it  was 
but  right  that  I  should  gratify  her,  though  in  truth  I  do  not 
know  what  work  I  shall  set  him  to  do  at  present.  Let  him 
first  have  a  bath,  and  see  that  he  is  clad  decently,  then  let  him 
have  a  good  meal.  I  doubt  if  he  has  had  one  since  he  was 
captured.  He  has  been  sorely  beaten  by  the  corsair,  and  that 


294:  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

from  no  fault  of  his  own,  but  only  because  he  opposed  the 
man's  brutality  to  a  child  slave.  If  any  of  his  wounds  need 
ointment,  see  that  he  has  it.  When  all  is  ready,  bring  him  to 
the  door  of  my  apartments,  in  order  that  I  may  show  to  my 
wife  that  I  have  gratified  her  whim." 

Then  he  motioned  to  Gervaise  to  follow  Muley,  who  was 
the  head  of  his  household.  Gervaise  resisted  the  impulse  to 
thank  his  new  master,  and  followed  in  silence. 

He  was  first  taken  to  a  bath-room,  furnished  with  an  abun- 
dance of  hot  and  cold  water.  Muley  uttered  an  exclamation 
as,  on  Gervaise  throwing  off  his  bernouse,  he  saw  that  his  flesh 
was  a  mass  of  bruises.  After  filling  the  bath  with  hot  water, 
he  motioned  to  Gervaise  to  get  in,  and  lie  there  until  he  re- 
turned. It  was  some  time  before  he  came  back,  bringing  a 
pot  of  ointment  and  some  bandages.  It  was  only  on  the  body 
that  the  wounds  needed  dressing,  for  here  the  blows  had  fallen 
on  the  naked  skin.  When  he  had  dressed  them,  Muley  went 
out  and  returned  with  some  Turkish  garments,  consisting  of  a 
pair  of  baggy  trousers  of  yellow  cotton,  a  white  shirt  of  the 
same  material,  and  a  sleeveless  jacket  of  blue  cloth  embroidered 
with  yellow  trimming ;  a  pair  of  yellow  slippers  completed  the 
costume.  Muley  now  took  him  into  another  room,  where  he 
set  before  him  a  dish  of  rice  with  a  meat  gravy,  a  large  piece 
of  bread,  and  a  wooden  spoon. 

Gervaise  ate  the  food  with  a  deep  feeling  of  thankfulness  for 
the  fate  that  had  thrown  him  into  such  good  hands.  Then, 
after  taking  a  long  draught  of  water,  he  rose  to  his  feet  and 
followed  Muley  into  the  entrance  hall.  The  latter  stopped  at 
a  door  on  the  opposite  side,  knocked  at  it,  and  then  motioned 
to  Gervaise  to  take  off  his  slippers.  The  door  was  opened  by 
the  Arab  himself. 

"Enter,"  he  said  courteously,  and  led  Gervaise  into  an 
apartment  where  a  lady  and  two  girls  were  sitting  on  a  divan. 
They  were  slightly  veiled ;  but,  as  Gervaise  afterwards  learnt, 
Ben  Ibyn  was  not  a  Moor,  but  a  Berber,  a  people  who  do  not 


A    KIND    MASTER  295 

keep  their  women  in  close  confinement  as  do  the  Moors,  but  al- 
low them  to  go  abroad  freely  without  being  entirely  muffled  up. 

"  Khadja,"  the  merchant  said,  "  this  is  the  Christian  slave  I 
purchased  to-day.  You  have  for  a  long  time  desired  one,  but 
not  until  now  have  I  found  one  who  would,  I  thought,  satisfy 
your  expectations.  What  think  you  of  him?" 

"  He  is  a  noble-looking  youth  truly,  Isaac,  with  his  fair, 
wavy  hair,  his  grey  eyes,  and  white  skin ;  truly,  all  my  neigh- 
bours will  envy  me  such  a  possession.  I  have  often  seen  Chris- 
tian slaves  before,  but  they  have  always  been  broken-down  and 
dejected-looking  creatures  ;  this  one  bears  himself  like  a  warrior 
rather  than  a  slave. ' ' 

"  He  is  a  warrior ;  he  is  one  of  those  terrible  knights  of 
Rhodes  whose  very  name  is  a  terror  to  the  Turks,  and  whose 
galleys  are  feared  even  by  our  boldest  corsairs.  He  must  be  of 
approved  valour,  for  he  was  commander  of  one  of  these  galleys. " 

The  girls  looked  with  amazement  at  Gervaise.  They  had 
often  heard  tales  of  the  capture  of  ships  that  had  sailed  from 
Tripoli,  by  the  galleys  of  the  Christian  knights,  and  had  pict- 
ured those  fierce  warriors  as  of  almost  supernatural  strength  and 
valour.  That  this  youth,  whose  upper  lip  was  but  shaded  with 
a  slight  moustache,  should  be  one  of  them,  struck  them  as 
being  almost  incredible. 

"  He  does  not  look  ferocious,  father,"  one  of  them  said.  "  He 
looks  pleasant  and  good-tempered,  as  if  he  could  injure  no  one. ' ' 

"And  yet  this  morning,  daughter,  he  braved,  unarmed,  the 
anger  of  Hassan  the  corsair,  on  the  deck  of  his  own  ship  ;  and 
when  the  pirate  called  upon  his  men  to  seize  him  he  threw  one 
overboard,  struck  two  more  on  to  the  deck,  and  it  needed  eight 
men  to  overpower  him. ' ' 

"  I  hope  he  won't  get  angry  with  us  !  "  the  younger  girl 
exclaimed. 

Gervaise  could  not  suppress  a  laugh,  and  then,  turning  to 
the  merchant,  said  in  Turkish, — 

"  I  must  ask  your  pardon  for  having  concealed  from  you  my 


296  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

knowledge  of  your  tongue.  I  kept  the  secret  from  all  on  board 
the  corsair,  and  meant  to  have  done  the  same  here,  deeming 
that  if  none  knew  that  I  spoke  the  language  it  would  greatly 
aid  me  should  I  ever  see  an  opportunity  of  making  my  escape  ; 
but,  Ben  Ibyn,  you  have  behaved  so  kindly  to  me  that  I  feel  it 
would  not  be  honourable  to  keep  it  a  secret  from  you,  and  to 
allow  you  and  the  ladies  to  talk  freely  before  me,  thinking  that 
I  was  altogether  ignorant  of  what  you  were  saying." 

"You  have  acted  well  and  honourably,"  Ben  Ibyn  said, 
putting  a  hand  on  his  shoulder  kindly.  "  We  have  heard  much 
of  the  character  of  the  Order,  and  that  though  valiant  in  battle, 
your  knights  are  courteous  and  chivalrous,  deeming  a  deceit- 
ful action  to  be  unworthy  of  them,  and  binding  themselves  by 
their  vows  to  succour  the  distressed  and  to  be  pitiful  to  the  weak. 
We  have  heard  that  our  wounded  are  tended  by  them  in  your 
hospitals  with  as  much  care  as  men  of  their  own  race  and  relig- 
ion, and  that  in  many  things  the  knights  were  to  be  admired  even 
by  those  who  were  their  foes.  I  see  now  that  these  reports  were 
true,  and  that  although,  as  you  say,  it  might  be  of  advantage  to 
you  that  none  should  know  you  speak  Arabic,  yet  it  is  from  a 
spiri  t  of  honourable  courtesy  you  have  now  told  us  that  you  do  so. 

"I  did  not  tell  you,  wife,"  he  went  on,  turning  to  her, 
' '  that  the  reason  why  he  bearded  Hassan  to-day  was  because 
the  corsair  brutally  struck  a  little  female  captive  ;  thus,  you  see, 
he,  at  the  risk  of  his  life, 'and  when  himself  a  captive,  carried 
out  his  vows  to  protect  the  defenceless.  And  now,  wife,  there 
is  one  thing  you  must  know.  For  some  time,  at  any  rate,  you 
must  abandon  the  idea  of  exciting  the  envy  of  your  friends  by 
exhibiting  your  Christian  captive  to  them.  As  you  are  aware, 
the  sultan  has  the  choice  of  any  one  slave  he  may  select  from 
each  batch  brought  in,  and  assuredly  he  would  choose  this  one, 
did  it  come  to  his  ears,  or  to  the  ears  of  one  of  his  officers,  that 
a  Christian  knight  had  been  landed.  For  this  reason  Hassan 
sold  him  to  me  for  a  less  sum  than  he  would  otherwise  have 
demanded,  and  we  must  for  some  time  keep  his  presence  here 


A    KIND    MASTER  297 

a  secret.  My  idea  is  that  he  shall  remain  indoors  until  we 
move  next  week  into  our  country  house,  where  he  will  be 
comparatively  free  from  observation." 

"  Certainly,  Isaac.  I  would  not  on  any  account  that  he 
should  be  handed  over  to  the  sultan,  for  he  would  either  be 
put  into  the  galleys  or  have  to  labour  in  the  streets. ' ' 

"  I  will  tell  Muley  to  order  the  other  slaves  to  say  nothing 
outside  of  the  fresh  arrival,  so  for  the  present  there  is  no  fear 
of  its  being  talked  about  in  the  town.  Hassan  will,  for  his 
own  sake,  keep  silent  on  the  matter.  I  have  not  yet  asked 
your  name,"  he  went  on,  turning  to  Gervaise. 

"  My  name  is  Gervaise  Tresham;  but  it  will  be  easier  for 
you  to  call  me  by  my  first  name  only." 

"  Then,  Gervaise,  it  were  well  that  you  retired  to  rest  at 
once,  for  I  am  sure  that  you  sorely  need  it. ' '  He  touched  a  bell 
on  the  table,  and  told  Muley,  when  he  appeared,  to  conduct 
Gervaise  to  the  place  where  he  was  to  sleep,  which  was,  he  had 
already  ordered,  apart  from  the  quarters  of  the  other  slaves. 

"  The  young  fellow  is  a  mass  of  bruises,"  Ben  Ibyn  said  to 
his  wife,  when  the  door  closed  behind  Gervaise.  "  Hassan 
beat  him  so  savagely,  after  they  had  overpowered  and  bound 
him,  that  he  well-nigh  killed  him." 

An  exclamation  of  indignation  burst  from  the  wife  and 
daughters. 

"  Muley  has  seen  to  his  wounds,"  he  went  on,  "  and  he  will 
doubtless  be  cured  in  a  few  days.  And  now,  wife,  that  your 
wish  is  gratified,  and  I  have  purchased  -a  Christian  slave  for 
you,  may  I  ask  what  you  are  going  to  do  with  him  ?  " 

"  I  am  sure  I  do  not  know,"  she  said  in  a  tone  of  perplexity. 
"  I  had  thought  of  having  him  to  hand  round  coffee  when  my 
friends  call,  and  perhaps  to  work  in  the  garden,  but  I  did  not 
think  that  he  would  be  anything  like  this." 

"  That  is  no  reason  why  he  should  not  do  so,"  Ben  Ibyn  said. 
"  These  Christians,  I  hear,  treat  their  women  as  if  they  were 
superior  beings,  and  feel  it  no  dishonour  to  wait  upon  them  ; 


298  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE  CROSS 

I  think  you  cannot  do  better  than  carry  out  your  plan.  It  is 
certain  there  is  no  sort  of  work  that  he  would  prefer  to  it ; 
therefore,  let  it  be  understood  that  he  is  to  be  your  own  per- 
sonal attendant,  and  that  when  you  have  no  occasion  for  his 
services,  he  will  work  in  the  garden.  Only  do  not  for  the 
present  let  any  of  your  friends  see  him ;  they  would  spread 
the  news  like  wildfire,  and  in  a  week  every  soul  in  the  town 
would  know  that  you  had  a  good-looking  Christian  slave,  and 
the  sultan's  officer  would  be  sending  for  me  to  ask  how  I  ob- 
tained him.  We  must  put  a  turban  on  him.  Any  one  who 
caught  a  glimpse  of  that  hair  of  his,  however  far  distant,  would 
know  that  he  was  a  Frank." 

"  We  might  stain  his  face  and  hands  with  walnut  juice," 
Khadja  said,  "  he  would  pass  as  a  Nubian.  Some  of  them  are 
tall  and  strong. ' ' 

"A  very  good  thought,  wife;  it  would  bean  excellent 
disguise.  So  shall  it  be."  He  touched  the  bell  again.  "  Tell 
Muley  I  would  speak  with  him.  Muley,"  he  went  on,  when 
the  steward  appeared,  "  have  you  said  aught  to  any  of  the  ser- 
vants touching  the  Christian  ?  ' ' 

"  No,  my  lord  ;  you  gave  me  no  instructions  about  it,  and 
I  thought  it  better  to  wait  until  the  morning,  when  I  could 
ask  you." 

"  You  did  well.  We  have  determined  to  stain  his  skin,  and 
at  present  he  will  pass  as  a  Nubian.  This  will  avoid  all 
questions  and -talk." 

"  But,  my  lord,  they  will  wonder  that  he  cannot  speak  their 
tongue." 

''He  must  pass  among  them  as  a  mute;  but  indeed  he 
speaks  Arabic  as  well  as  we  do,  Muley." 

The  man  uttered  an  exclamation  of  surprise. 

"He  had  intended  to  conceal  his  knowledge,"  Ben  Ibyn 
went  on,  "  which  would  have  been  politic  ;  but  when  he  found 
that  my  intentions  were  kind,  he  told  us  that  he  knew  our 
tongue,  and  now  revealed  his  knowledge,  as  he  thought  it 


SIR  GERVAISE  IS   DISGUISED   AS  A   NUBIAN  SLAVE. 


A   KIND    MASTER  299 

would  be  dishonourable  to  listen  to  our  talk,  leaving  us  under 
the  impression  that  he  could  not  understand  us." 

"Truly  these  Christians  are  strange  men,"  Muley  said. 
"This  youth,  who  has  not  yet  grown  the  hair  on  his  face,  is 
nevertheless  commander  of  a  war-galley.  He  is  ready  to  risk 
his  life  on  behalf  of  a  slave,  and  can  strike  down  men  with  his 
unarmed  hand  ;  he  is  as  gentle  in  his  manner  as  a  woman  ;  and 
now  it  seems  he  can  talk  Arabic,  and  although  it  was  in  his 
power  to  keep  this  secret  he  tells  it  rather  than  overhear  words 
that  are  not  meant  for  his  ear.  Truly  they  are  strange  people, 
the  Franks.  I  will  prepare  some  stain  in  the  morning,  my  lord, 
and  complete  his  disguise  before  any  of  the  others  see  him. ' ' 

The  next  morning  Muley  told  Gervaise  that  his  master 
thought  that  it  would  be  safer  and  more  convenient  for  him  to 
pass  as  a  dumb  Nubian  slave.  Gervaise  thought  the  plan  an 
excellent  one ;  and  he  was  soon  transformed,  Muley  shaving 
that  part  of  the  hair  that  would  have  shown  below  the  turban, 
and  then  staining  him  a  deep  brownish-black,  from  the  waist 
upwards,  together  with  his  feet  and  his  legs  up  to  his  knee, 
and  darkening  his  eyebrows,  eyelashes,  and  moustache. 

"  Save  that  your  lips  lack  the  thickness,  and  your  nose  is 
straighter  than  those  of  Nubians,  no  one  would  doubt  bat  that 
you  were  one  of  that  race  ;  and  this  is  of  little  consequence,  as 
many  of  them  are  of  mixed  blood,  and,  though  retaining  their 
dark  colour,  have  features  that  in  their  outline  resemble  those 
of  the  Arabs.  Now  I  will  take  you  to  Ben  Ibyn,  so  that  he 
may  judge  whether  any  further  change  is  required  before  the 
servants  and  slaves  see  you." 

"  That  is  excellent,"  the  merchant  said,  when  he  had  care- 
fully inspected  Gervaise,  "  I  should  pass  you  myself  without 
recognizing  you.  Now  you  can  take  him  into  the  servants' 
quarters,  Muley,  and  tell  them  that  he  is  a  new  slave  whom  I 
have  purchased,  and  that  henceforth  it  will  be  his  duty  to  wait 
upon  my  wife,  to  whom  I  have  presented  him  as  her  special 
attendant,  and  that  he  will  accompany  her  and  my  daughters 


300  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

when  they  go  abroad  to  make  their  purchases  or  visit  their 
friends.  Give  some  reason,  if  you  can  think  of  one,  why  you 
have  bestowed  him  in  a  chamber  separate  from  the  rest. ' ' 

Gervaise  at  once  took  up  his  new  duties,  and  an  hour  later, 
carrying  a  basket,  followed  them  into  the  town.  It  was 
strange  to  him  thus  to  be  walking  among  the  fanatical  Moors, 
who,  had  they  known  the  damage  that  he  had  inflicted  upon 
their  galleys,  would  have  torn  him  in  pieces.  None  gave  him, 
however,  more  than  a  passing  look.  Nubian  slaves  were  no 
uncommon  sight  in  the  town,  and  in  wealthy  Moorish  families 
were  commonly  employed  in  places  of  trust,  and  especially  as 
attendants  in  the  harems.  The  ladies  were  now  as  closely 
veiled  as  the  Moorish  women,  it  being  only  in  the  house  that 
they  followed  the  Berber  customs.  Gervaise  had  learnt  from 
Muley  that  Ben  Ibyn  was  one  of  the  richest  merchants  in 
Tripoli,  trading  direct  with  Egypt,  Syria,  and  Constantinople, 
besides  carrying  on  a  large  trade  with  the  Berber  tribes  in  the 
interior.  He  returned  to  the  house  with  his  basket  full  of 
provisions,  and  having  handed  these  over  to  the  cook,  he  went 
to  the  private  apartments,  as  Khadja  had  requested  him  to  do 
Here  she  and  her  daughters  asked  him  innumerable  questions 
as  to  his  country  and  its  customs,  and  then  about  Rhodes  and 
the  Order  to  which  he  belonged.  Their  surprise  was  great 
when  they  heard  that  the  knights  were  bound  to  celibacy. 

"  But  why  should  they  not  marry  if  they  like  ? — why  should 
they  not  have  wives,  children,  and  homes  like  other  people?  " 
Khadja  asked. 

"  It  is  that  they  may  devote  their  whole  lives  to  their  work. 
Their  home  is  the  convent  at  Rhodes,  or  at  one  of  the  com- 
manderies  scattered  over  Europe,  where  they  take  charge  of 
the  estates  of  the  Order. ' ' 

"But  why  should  they  not  marry  then,  Gervaise?  At 
Rhodes  there  might  be  danger  for  women  and  children,  but 
when  they  return  to  Europe  to  take  charge  of  the  estates, 
surely  they  would  do  their  duty  no  worse  for  having  wives  ?  " 


A    KIND    MASTER  301 

Gervaise  smiled. 

' '  I  did  not  make  the  rules  of  the  Order,  lady,  but  I  have 
thought  myself  that  although,  so  long  as  they  are  doing  mili- 
tary work  at  the  convent,  it  is  well  that  they  should  not 
marry,  yet  there  is  no  good  reason  why,  when  established  in 
commanderies  at  home,  they  should  not,  like  other  knights 
and  nobles,  marry  if  it  so  pleases  them." 

In  the  evening  the  merchant  returned  from  his  stores,  which 
were  situated  down  by  the  port.  Soon  after  he  came  in  he 
sent  for  Gervaise.  "  There  is  a  question  I  had  intended  to 
ask  you  last  night,"  he  said,  "but  it  escaped  me.  More 
than  two  months  since  there  sailed  from  this  port  and  others 
many  vessels — not  the  ships  of  the  State,  but  corsairs.  In  all, 
more  than  twenty  ships  started,  with  the  intention  of  making 
a  great  raid  upon  the  coast  of  Italy.  No  word  has  since  been 
received  of  them,  and  their  friends  here  are  becoming  very  un- 
easy, the  more  so  as  we  hear  that  neither  at  Tunis  nor  Al- 
giers has  any  news  been  received.  Have  you  heard  at  Rhodes 
of  a  Moorish  fleet  having  been  ravaging  the  coast  of  Italy?" 

"  Have  you  any  friends  on  board  the  ships  that  sailed  from 
here,  or  any  interest  in  the  venture,  Ben  Ibyn?  " 

The  merchant  shook  his  head.  "We  Berbers,"  he  said, 
"  are  not  like  the  Moors,  and  have  but  little  to  do  with  the 
sea,  save  by  the  way  of  trade.  For  myself,  I  regret  that  these 
corsair  ships  are  constantly  putting  out.  Were  it  not  for  them 
and  their  doings  we  might  trade  with  the  ports  of  France,  of 
Spain,  and  Italy,  and  be  on  good  terms  with  all.  There  is  no 
reason  why,  because  our  faiths  are  different,  we  should  be 
constantly  fighting.  It  is  true  that  the  Turks  threaten  Europe, 
and  are  even  now  preparing  to  capture  Rhodes  ;  but  this  is  no 
question  of  religion.  The  Turks  are  warlike  and  ambitious; 
they  have  conquered  Syria,  and  war  with  Egypt  and  Persia  ; 
but  the  Moorish  states  are  small,  they  have  no  thought  of 
conquest,  and  might  live  peaceably  with  Europe  were  it  not 
for  the  hatred  excited  against  them  by  the  corsairs." 


302  A    KXIGHT    OF    THE   WHITE    CROSS 

< '  In  that  case  I  can  tell  you  the  truth.  Thirteen  of  those 
ships  were  taken  into  Rhodes  as  prizes ;  the  other  eleven  were 
burnt.  Not  one  of  the  fleet  escaped. " 

Exclamations  of  surprise  broke  from  Ben  Ibyn,  his  wife,  and 
daughters. 

"  I  am  astonished,  indeed,"  the  merchant  said.  "  It  was 
reported  here  that  the  Genoese  galleys  were  all  laid  up,  and  it 
was  thought  that  they  would  be  able  to  sweep  the  seas  with- 
out opposition,  and  to  bring  home  vast  spoil  and  many  cap- 
tives, both  from  the  ships  they  took  and  from  many  of  the 
villages  and  small  towns  of  the  coast.  How  came  such  a  mis- 
fortune to  happen  to  them  ?  It  will  create  consternation  here 
when  it  is  known,  for  although  it  was  not  a  state  enterprise, 
the  sultan  himself  and  almost  all  the  rich  Moors  embarked 
money  in  the  fitting  out  of  the  ships,  and  were  to  have 
shares  in  the  spoil  taken.  How  happened  it  that  so  strong 
a  fleet  was  all  taken  or  destroyed,  without  even  one  vessel 
being  able  to  get  away  to  carry  home  the  news  of  the  dis- 
aster?" 

"  Fortune  was  against  them, ' '  Gervaise  said.  « '  Three  ships 
on  their  way  up  were  captured  by  a  galley  of  our  Order,  and 
her  commander  having  obtained  news  of  the  whereabouts  of  the 
spot  where  the  corsairs  were  to  rendezvous,  found  them  all  lying 
together  in  a  small  inlet,  and  launched  against  them  a  number 
of  fishing-boats  fitted  out  as  fire-ships.  The  corsairs,  packed 
closely  together,  were  unable  to  avoid  them,  and,  as  I  told  you, 
eleven  of  their  ships  were  burnt,  four  were  run  ashore  to  avoid 
the  flames,  while  six,  trying  to  make  their  way  out,  were  capt- 
ured by  the  galley,  aided  by  the  three  prizes  that  were  taken 
and  which  the  knights  had  caused  to  be  manned  by  Sards." 

"The  ways  of  Allah  the  All-seeing  are  wonderful,"  the 
merchant  said.  "  It  was  indeed  a  marvellous  feat  for  one  galley 
thus  to  destroy  a  great  fleet." 

"  It  was  the  result  of  good  fortune  rather  than  skill  and 
valour,"  Gervaise  said. 


A    KIND    MASTER  303 

"  Nay,  nay  ;  let  praise  be  given  where  it  is  due.  It  was  a 
marvellous  feat ;  and  although  there  is  good  or  bad  fortune  in 
every  event,  such  a  deed  could  not  have  been  performed,  and 
would  not  even  have  been  thought  of,  save  by  a  great  com- 
mander. Who  was  the  knight  who  thus  with  one  galley 
alone  destroyed  a  strongly-manned  fleet,  from  which  great 
things  had  been  looked  for  ?  " 

Gervaise  hesitated.  "  It  was  a  young  knight,"  he  said,  "  of 
but  little  standing  in  the  Order,  and  whose  name  is  entirely 
unknown  outside  its  ranks. ' ' 

"By  this  time  it  must  be  well  known,"  Ben  Ibyn  said} 
"  and  it  will  soon  be  known  throughout  Christendom,  and 
will  be  dreaded  by  every  Moor.  What  was  it?  " 

Gervaise  again  hesitated. 

"I  would  not  have  told  you  the  story  at  all,  Ben  Ibyn, 
had  I  supposed  you  would  have  cared  to  inquire  into  the 
matter.  Of  course,  I  will  tell  you  the  name  if  you  insist  upon 
it,  but  I  would  much  rather  you  did  not  ask." 

"  But  why?  "  the  merchant  asked,  in  surprise.  "  If  I  hear 
it  not  from  you,  I  shall  assuredly  hear  it  ere  long  from  others, 
for  it  will  be  brought  by  traders  who  are  in  communication 
with  Italy.  I  cannot  understand  why  you  should  thus  hesi- 
tate about  telling  me  the  name  of  this  commander.  When 
known  it  will  doubtless  be  cursed  by  thousands  of  Moorish 
wives  and  mothers ;  but  we  Berbers  are  another  race.  None 
of  our  friends  or  kindred  were  on  board  the  fleet ;  and  we 
traders  have  rather  reason  to  rejoice,  for,  in  the  first  place,  so 
severe  a  lesson  will  keep  the  corsairs  in  their  ports  for  a  long 
time ;  and  in  the  second,  had  the  fleet  succeeded  according  to 
general  expectation,  so  great  a  store  of  European  goods  would 
have  been  brought  home  that  the  market  would  have  been 
glutted,  and  the  goods  in  our  storehouses  would  have  lost  all 
their  value.  What  reason,  then,  can  you  possibly  have  in 
refusing  to  tell  me  the  name  of  the  commander  who  has  won 
for  himself  such  credit  and  glory  ?  " 


304  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

Gervaise  saw  that  Ben  Ibyn  was  seriously  annoyed  at  what 
he  deemed  his  unaccountable  obstinacy. 

"  I  will  tell  you,  Ben  Ibyn,  rather  than  excite  your  dis- 
pleasure, though  I  would  much  have  preferred  not  to  do  so, 
for  you  speak  so  much  more  highly  of  the  affair  than  it  merits. 
I  had  myself  the  honour  of  being  in  command  of  that  galley. ' ' 

The  ladies  broke  into  exclamations  of  surprise,  while  the 
merchant  regarded  him  with  grave  displeasure. 

"  I  had  thought  you  truthful,"  he  said  ;  "  but  this  passes  all 
belief.  Dost  tell  me  that  a  beardless  youth  could  with  one 
galley  overcome  a  great  fleet,  commanded  by  the  most  noted 
captains  on  our  coast  ?  " 

"  I  thought  that  you  would  not  believe  me,"  Gervaise  said 
quietly  ;  "and,  therefore,  would  have  much  preferred  to  keep 
silence,  knowing  that  I  had  no  means  of  supporting  my  claim. 
That  was  not  the  only  reason  ;  the  other  was,  that  already  a 
great  deal  too  much  has  been  said  about  an  affair  in  which, 
as  I  have  told  you,  I  owed  everything  to  good  fortune,  and 
am  heartily  sick  of  receiving  what  I  consider  altogether  undue 
praise.  Ah  !  "  he  exclaimed  suddenly,  "  the  thought  has  just 
occurred  to  me  of  a  way  by  which  you  can  obtain  confirmation 
of  my  story ;  and,  as  I  value  your  good  opinion  and  would 
not  be  regarded  as  a  boaster  and  a  liar,  I  entreat  you  to  take 
it.  I  heard  you  tell  the  eight  men  who  were  rowers  in  my 
boat  when  I  was  captured,  to  call  upon  you  to-day,  that  you 
might  do  something  for  them." 

"  They  came  this  morning  to  my  store,"  the  merchant  said. 
"  They  told  me  their  wishes.  I  promised  them  that  I  would 
make  inquiry  about  ships  sailing  East ;  and  they  are  to  come 
to  me  again  to-morrow." 

"Then,  sir,  I  beseech  you  to  suffer  me  to  go  down  with 
you  to  your  stores  and  meet  them  there.  The  galley  of  which 
I  was  in  command  at  the  time  I  was  captured  is  the  same  as 
that  in  which  a  few  weeks  before  I  fought  the  corsairs,  and 
these  eight  men  were  with  me  at  that  time.  I  begged  them 


A    KIND    MASTER  305 

for  my  sake  to  maintain  an  absolute  silence  as  to  that  affair, 
and  I  have  no  doubt  that  they  have  done  so,  for  in  the  fury 
the  news  would  excite,  they  might  fall  victims  to  the  first  out- 
burst, though,  of  course,  wholly  innocent  of  any  share  in  the 
misfortune.  Did  you  question  them  without  my  being  pres- 
ent, they  might  still  keep  silent,  fearing  to  injure  me.  But  if, 
before  you  begin  to  do  so,  I  tell  them  that  they  can  speak  the 
truth  with  reference  to  me,  they  will,  I  am  sure,  confirm  my 
story,  incredible  as  it  may  now  appear  to  you." 

"  That  is  a  fair  offer,"  the  merchant  said  gravely,  "  and  I 
accept  it,  for  it  may  be  that  I  have  been  too  hasty,  and  I  trust 
it  may  prove  so.  I  would  rather  find  myself  to  be  in  fault 
than  that  the  esteem  with  which  you  have  inspired  me  should 
prove  to  be  misplaced.  We  will  speak  no  further  on  the  sub- 
ject now.  I  have  not  yet  asked  you  how  it  is  that  you  come 
to  speak  our  language  so  well. ' ' 

Gervaise  related  how  he  had  studied  with  Suleiman  Ali,  and 
had  escorted  him  to  Syria  and  received  his  ransom. 

"I  had  hoped,"  he  said,  "that  the  corsair  would  have 
taken  me  to  Syria,  for  there  I  could  have  communicated  with 
Suleiman,  who  would,  I  am  sure,  have  given  me  such  shelter 
and  aid  as  he  was  able,  in  the  event  of  my  making  my  escape 
from  slavery  and  finding  myself  urTable  to  leave  by  sea. ' ' 

The  next  day  Gervaise  went  with  Ben  Ibyn  to  his  stores. 
The  eight  men  arrived  shortly  afterwards,  and  the  merchant, 
in  the  presence  of  Gervafse,  questioned  them  as  to  whether 
they  knew  anything  of  a  misfortune  that  was  said  to  have  be- 
fallen some  ships  that  had  sailed  for  the  coast  of  Italy.  The 
men,  surprised  at  the  question,  glanced  at  Gervaise,  who  said, — 

"  Tell  Ben  Ibyn  the  truth  ;  it  will  do  neither  you  nor  me 
any  harm,  and  will  be  mentioned  by  him  to  no  one  else." 

Accordingly  the  story  was  told.     Ben  Ibyn  listened  gravely. 

"  It  was  the  will  of  Allah,"  he  said,  when  it  was  concluded. 
"I  have  wronged  you,  Gervaise,  but  your  tale  seemed  too 
marvellous  to  be  true.  Do  not  speak  of  this  to  others,"  he 


306  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

went  on  to  the  eight  men.  "  Now  as  to  yourselves.  For  the 
four  of  you  who  desire  to  return  to  Syria  I  have  taken  passage 
in  a  trader  that  sails  to-morrow  and  will  touch  at  Joppa  and 
Acre.  Here  is  money  to  provide  yourselves  with  garments 
and  to  carry  you  to  your  homes.  For  you,"  he  said  to  two 
who  were  natives  of  the  town,  "lean  myself  find  employ- 
ment here,  and  if  your  conduct  is  good,  you  will  have  no 
reason  to  regret  taking  service  with  me.  The  two  of  you  who 
desire  to  go  to  Smyrna  I  will  give  passage  there  in  a  ship 
which  will  sail  next  week ;  in  the  meantime,  here  is  money 
for  your  present  wants. ' ' 

Two  days  later  the  merchant's  family  moved  to  his  house 
two  miles  outside  the  town,  and  here  Gervaise  remained  for 
six  months.  His  life  was  not  an  unpleasant  one ;  he  was 
treated  with  great  kindness  by  the  merchant  and  his  wife,  his 
duties  were  but  slight,  and  he  had  no  more  labour  to  perform 
in  the  garden  than  he  cared  to  do.  Nevertheless,  he  felt  that 
he  would  rather  have  fallen  into  the  hands  of  a  less  kind 
master,  for  it  seemed  to  him  that  it  would  be  an  act  almost  of 
treachery  to  escape  from  those  who  treated  him  as  a  friend  ; 
moreover,  at  the  country  house  he  was  not  in  a  position  to 
frame  any  plans  for  escape,  had  he  decided  upon  attempting 
it,  nor  could  he  have  found  out  when  Hassan  made  one  of  his 
occasional  visits  to  the  port. 

One  evening  the  merchant  returned  from  the  town  accom- 
panied by  one  of  the  sultan's  officers  and  four  soldiers.  Ben 
Ibyn  was  evidently  much  depressed  and  disturbed ;  he  told 
Muley  as  he  entered,  to  fetch  Gervaise.  When  the  latter,  in 
obedience  to  the  order,  came  in  from  the  garden,  the  officer 
said  in  Italian, — 

"It  having  come  to  the  ears  of  the  sultan  my  master  that  the 
merchant  Ben  Ibyn  has  ventured,  contrary  to  the  law,  to  pur- 
chase a  Christian  slave  brought  secretly  into  the  town,  he  has 
declared  the  slave  to  be  forfeited  and  I  am  commanded  to  take 
him  at  once  to  the  slaves'  quarter. ' ' 


A    KIND    MASTER  307 

"I  am  at  the  sultan's  orders,"  Gervaise  said,  bowing  his 
head.  "  My  master  has  been  a  kind  one,  and  I  am  grateful  to 
him  for  his  treatment  of  me." 

Gervaise,  although  taken  aback  by  this  sudden  change  in  his 
fortunes,  was  not  so  cast  down  as  he  might  otherwise  have 
been  ;  he  would  now  be  free  to  carry  out  any  plan  for  escape 
that  he  might  devise,  and  by  his  being  addressed  in  Italian  it 
was  evident  to  him  that  his  knowledge  of  Turkish  was  unsus- 
pected. When  among  the  other  slaves  he  had  always  main- 
tained his  character  of  a  mute  ;  and  it  was  only  when  alone  in 
his  master's  family  that  he  had  spoken  at  all.  He  had  no 
doubt  that  his  betrayal  was  due  to  one  of  the  gardeners,  who 
had  several  times  shown  him  signs  of  ill-will,  being  doubtless 
jealous  of  the  immunity  he  enjoyed  from  hard  labour,  and  who 
must,  he  thought,  have  crept  up  and  overheard  some  conversa- 
tion ;  but  in  that  case  it  was  singular  that  the  fact  of  his  knowl- 
edge of  Turkish  had  not  been  mentioned.  Gervaise  afterwards 
learned  that  Ben  Ibyn  had  been  fined  a  heavy  sum  for  his 
breach  of  the  regulations. 

He  was  now  placed  between  the  soldiers,  and  marched  down 
to  the  town,  without  being  allowed  to  exchange  a  word  with 
the  merchant.  On  his  arrival  there  he  was  taken  to  the  slaves' 
quarter ;  here  his  clothes  were  stripped  from  him,  and  he  was 
given  in  their  place  a  ragged  shirt  and  trousers,  and  then  turned 
into  a  room  where  some  fifty  slaves  were  lying.  Of  these  about 
half  were  Europeans,  the  rest  malefactors  who  had  been  con- 
demned to  labour. 

The  appearance  of  all  was  miserable  in  the  extreme  ;  they  were 
clothed  in  rags,  and  the  faces  of  the  Europeans  had  a  dull,  hope- 
less look  that  told  alike  of  their  misery  and  of  their  despair  of  any 
escape  from  it.  They  looked  up  listlessly  as  he  entered,  and  then 
an  Italian  said,  "  Cospetto,  comrade;  but  I  know  not  whether 
your  place  is  with  us,  or  with  the  Moslems  across  there.  As  far 
as  colour  goes  I  should  put  you  down  as  a  Nubian  ;  but  your 
hair  is  of  a  hue  that  consorts  but  badly  with  that  of  your  flesh. " 


308  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"I  am  an  Englishman,"  Gervaise  replied;  "but  I  have 
been  passing  under  a  disguise  which  has  unfortunately  been 
detected,  so  you  see  here  I  am." 

The  mystery  explained,  his  questioner  had  no  further  interest 
in  the  matter,  and  Gervaise,  picking  out  a  vacant  place  on  the 
stone  floor,  sat  down  and  looked  round  him.  The  room,  although 
large,  was  roughly  built,  and  had  doubtless  been  erected  with  a 
view  to  its  present  purpose.  There  were  only  a  few  windows;  and 
these  were  small,  strongly  barred,  and  twelve  feet  above  the  floor. 

"  Not  easy  to  get  out  of  them,"  Gervaise  said  to  himself; 
"  at  least,  not  easy  without  aid  ;  and  with  these  Moslems  here 
it  is  clear  that  nothing  can  be  done." 

They  were  roused  at  daybreak  next  morning,  and  were  taken 
out  to  their  work  under  the  guard  of  six  armed  Moors,  two 
overseers,  provided  with  long  whips,  accompanied  them.  The 
work  consisted  of  cleaning  the  streets  and  working  on  the  roads, 
and  at  times  of  carrying  stones  for  the  use  of  the  masons  em- 
ployed in  building  an  addition  to  the  palace  of  the  sultan. 
This  was  the  work  to  which  the  gang  was  set  that  morning, 
and  it  was  not  long  before  the  vigour  with  which  Gervaise 
worked,  and  the  strength  he  displayed  in  moving  the  heavy 
stones,  attracted  the  attention  of  the  overseers  and  of  the  head 
of  the  masons. 

"  That  is  a  rare  good  fellow  you  have  got  there,  that  black 
with  the  curious  hair,"  the  latter  said.  "  What  is  the  man  ? 
I  never  saw  one  like  him." 

"  He  is  a  Christian,"  one  of  the  overseers  said.  "  He  was 
smuggled  into  the  town  and  sold  to  Ben  Ibyn  the  Berber,  who, 
to  conceal  the  matter,  dyed  him  black  ;  but  it  got  to  the  ears  of 
the  sultan,  and  he  had  him  taken  from  the  Berber,  and  brought 
here ;  I  have  no  doubt  the  merchant  has  been  squeezed  rarely. ' ' 

"  Well,  that  is  a  good  fellow  to  work,"  the  other  said.  "  He 
has  just  moved  a  stone,  single-handed,  that  it  would  have  taken 
half  a  dozen  of  the  others  to  lift.  I  wish  you  would  put  him 
regularly  on  this  job ;  any  one  will  do  to  sweep  the  streets ; 


A    KIND    MASTER  309 

but  a  fellow  like  that  will  be  of  real  use  here,  especially  when 
the  wall  rises  a  bit  higher." 

"It  makes  no  difference  to  me,"  the  overseer  said.  "  I  will 
give  orders  when  I  go  down  that  he  shall  be  always  sent  up 
with  whichever  gang  comes  here." 

The  head  mason,  who  was  the  chief  official  of  the  work, 
soon  saw  that  Gervaise  not  only  possessed  strength,  but  knowl- 
edge of  the  manner  in  which  the  work  should  be  done.  Ac- 
customed as  he  had  been  to  direct  the  slaves  at  work  on  the 
fortifications  at  Rhodes,  he  had  learned  the  best  methods  of 
moving  massive  stones,  and  setting  them  in  the  places  that 
they  were  to  occupy.  At  the  end  of  the  day  the  head  mason 
told  one  of  the  slaves  who  spoke  Italian  to  inquire  of  Gervaise 
whether  he  had  ever  been  employed  on  such  work  before. 
Gervaise  replied  that  he  had  been  engaged  in  the  construction 
of  large  buildings. 

"  I  thought  so,"  the  officer  said  to  the  overseer  ;  "  the  way 
he  uses  his  lever  shows  that  he  knows  what  he  is  doing.  Most 
of  the  slaves  are  worth  nothing  ;  but  I  can  see  that  this  fellow 
will  prove  a  treasure  to  us." 

Gervaise  returned  to  the  prison  well  satisfied  with  his  day's 
work.  The  labour,  hard  though  it  was,  was  an  absolute  pleas- 
ure to  him.  There  was,  moreover,  nothing  degrading  in  it, 
and  while  the  overseers  had  plied  their  whips  freely  on  the  backs 
of  many  of  his  companions,  he  had  not  only  escaped,  but  had, 
he  felt,  succeeded  in  pleasing  his  masters.  The  next  morning 
when  the  gangs  were  drawn  up  in  the  yard  before  starting  for 
work,  he  was  surprised  at  being  ordered  to  leave  the  one  to 
which  he  belonged  and  to  fall  in  with  another,  and  was  greatly 
pleased  when  he  found  that  this  took  its  way  to  the  spot  at  which 
they  were  at  work  on  the  previous  day. 

At  the  end  of  the  week,  when  the  work  of  the  day  was  fin- 
ished, the  head  mason  came  down  to  the  prison  and  spoke  to  the 
governor ;  a  few  minutes  afterwards  Gervaise  was  called  out. 
The  governor  was  standing  in  the  courtyard  with  an  interpreter. 


310  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE  WHITE   CROSS 

"  This  officer  tells  me  that  you  are  skilled  in  masonry,"  the 
governor  said,  "  and  has  desired  that  you  shall  be  appointed 
overseer  of  the  gang  whose  duty  it  is  to  move  the  stones,  saying 
he  is  sure  that  with  half  the  slaves  now  employed  you  would  get 
as  much  work  done  as  at  present.  Have  you  anything  to  say  ? ' ' 

"  I  thank  you,  my  lord,  and  this  officer,"  Gervaise  replied. 
"  I  will  do  my  best ;  but  I  would  submit  to  you  that  it  would 
be  better  if  I  could  have  the  same  slaves  always  with  me,  instead 
of  their  being  changed  every  day ;  I  could  then  instruct  them 
in  their  work.  I  would  also  submit  that  it  were  well  to  pick  men 
with  some  strength  for  this  labour,  for  many  are  so  weak  that 
they  are  well-nigh  useless  in  the  moving  of  heavy  weights ;  and 
lastly,  I  would  humbly  submit  to  you  that  if  men  are  to  do 
good  work  they  must  be  fed.  This  work  is  as  heavy  as  that 
in  the  galleys,  and  the  men  there  employed  receive  extra  ra- 
tions to  strengthen  them ;  and  I  could  assuredly  obtain  far 
better  results  if  the  gang  employed  upon  this  labour  were  to 
receive  a  somewhat  larger  supply  of  food." 

"  The  fellow  speaks  boldly,"  the  governor  said  to  the  head 
mason,  when  the  reply  was  translated. 

"  There  is  reason  in  what  he  says,  my  lord.  Many  of  the 
slaves,  though  fit  for  the  light  labour  of  cleaning  the  streets, 
are  of  very  little  use  to  us,  and  even  the  whip  of  the  drivers  can- 
not get  more  than  a  momentary  effort  from  them.  If  you  can 
save  twenty-five  men's  labour  for  other  work,  it  will  pay  to  give 
more  food  to  the  other  twenty-five.  I  should  let  this  man  pick 
out  his  gang.  He  has  worked  in  turn  with  all  of  them,  and 
must  know  what  each  can  do  ;  besides,  it  is  necessary  that  he 
should  have  men  who  can  understand  his  orders. ' ' 

Gervaise  accordingly  was  allowed  to  pick  out  his  gang ;  and 
he  chose  those  whom  he  had  observed  to  be  the  strongest  and 
most  handy  at  the  work. 

"You  will  be  responsible,"  the  governor  said  to  him,  "  for 
the  masons  being  supplied  with  stone,  and  if  you  fail  you  will 
be  punished  and  put  to  other  labour. ' ' 


A   KIND   MASTER  3ll 

So  far  from  there  being  any  falling  off  in  the  work,  the  head 
mason  found  that,  even  though  the  walls  began  to  rise  and  the 
labour  of  transporting  the  stones  into  their  positions  became 
greater,  the  masons  were  never  kept  standing.  The  men, 
finding  their  position  improved,  both  in  the  matter  of  food  and 
in  the  immunity  they  enjoyed  from  blows,  worked  cheerfully 
and  well.  Gervaise  did  not  content  himself  with  giving  or- 
ders, but  worked  at  the  heaviest  jobs,  and,  little  by  little,  intro- 
duced many  of  the  appliances  used  by  the  skilled  masons  of 
Rhodes  in  transporting  and  lifting  heavy  stones.  Gradually 
his  own  position  improved  :  he  was  treated  as  an  overseer,  and 
was  permitted  to  sleep  under  an  arcade  that  ran  along  one  side 
of  the  yard,  instead  of  being  confined  in  the  close  and  stifling 
cell.  His  dye  had  long  since  worn  off. 

One  day  as  he  was  going  up  with  his  gang  under  charge  of 
the  usual  guards  to  the  building,  he  saw  Hassan,  who  grinned 
maliciously. 

"  Ah,  ah,  Christian  dog !  "  he  said  ;  "  you  threatened  me, 
and  I  have  not  forgotten  it.  The  last  time  I  was  here  I  made 
it  known  to  an  officer  of  the  sultan  that  Ben  Ibyn  had  a  Chris- 
tian slave  who  had  been  smuggled  in ;  and  here  you  are.  I 
hope  you  like  the  change.  Look,  I  have  still  got  your  amulet, 
and  it  has  brought  me  better  luck  than  it  did  you.  I  have  been 
fortunate  ever  since,  and  no  money  could  buy  it  from  me." 

He  had  been  walking  close  to  Gervaise  as  he  spoke,  and  one 
of  the  guards  pushed  him  roughly  aside. 

Time  passed  on.  One  day  on  his  return  from  work  a  well- 
dressed  Moor  met  him  as  the  gang  broke  up  in  the  courtyard. 

"  I  have  permission  to  speak  to  you,"  he  said  to  Gervaise, 
and  drew  him  aside.  "  Know,  O  Christian,  that  I  have  re- 
ceived a  letter  from  Suleiman  Ali,  of  Syria.  He  tells  me  that 
he  has  heard  from  Ben  Ibyn,  the  Berber,  that  you  are  a  slave, 
and  has  asked  me  to  inquire  of  the  sultan  the  price  that  he  will 
take  for  your  ransom,  expressing  his  willingness  to  pay  what- 
ever may  be  demanded,  and  charging  me  to  defray  the  sum 


312  A   KNIGHT   OF  THE  WHITE   CROSS 

and  to  make  arrangements  by  which  you  may  return  to 
Europe.  This  I  am  willing  to  do,  knowing  Suleiman  Ali  by 
report  as  a  wealthy  man  and  an  honourable  one.  I  saw  the 
sultan  yesterday.  He  told  me  that  I  should  have  an  answer 
this  morning  as  to  the  ransom  that  he  would  take.  When  I 
went  to  him  again  to-day,  he  said  that  he  had  learnt  from  the 
governor  of  the  prison  and  from  the  head  mason  that  you  were 
almost  beyond  price,  that  you  had  been  raised  to  the  position 
of  superintendent  of  the  slaves  employed  in  the  building  of  his 
palace,  and  that  you  were  a  man  of  such  skill  that  he  would 
not  part  with  you  at  any  price  until  the  work  was  finished. 
After  that  he  would  sell  you  ;  but  he  named  a  price  threefold 
that  at  which  the  very  best  white  slave  in  Tripoli  would  be 
valued.  However,  from  the  way  in  which  Suleiman  Ali 
wrote,  I  doubt  not  that  he  would  pay  it,  great  as  it  is,  for  he 
speaks  of  you  in  terms  of  affection,  and  I  would  pay  the  money 
could  you  be  released  at  once.  As  it  is,  however,  I  shall 
write  to  him,  and  there  will  be  ample  time  for  an  answer  to  be 
received  from  him  before  the  building  is  finished." 

"  Truly  I  am  deeply  thankful  to  my  good  friend,  Suleiman 
Ali ;  but  for  reasons  of  my  own  I  am  not  desirous  of  being 
ransomed  at  present,  especially  at  such  a  cost,  which  I  should 
feel  bound  in  honour  to  repay  to  him  ;  therefore,  I  pray  you 
to  write  to  him,  saying  that  while  I  thank  him  from  my  heart 
for  his  kindness,  I  am  not  able  to  avail  myself  of  it.  In  the 
first  place,  I  am  well  treated  here,  and  my  position  is  not  an 
unpleasant  one ;  secondly,  the  sum  required  for  ransom  is  al- 
together preposterous  ;  thirdly,  I  am  not  without  hopes  that 
I  may  some  day  find  other  means  of  freeing  myself  without  so 
great  a  sacrifice  ;  and  lastly,  that  I  have  a  reason  which  I  can- 
not mention,  why,  at  present,  I  would  not  quit  Tripoli,  even 
were  I  free  to-morrow.  You  can  tell  him  that  this  is  the  reason 
which,  most  of  all,  weighs  with  me.  Do  not,  however,  I  pray 
you,  let  the  sultan  know  that  I  have  refused  to  be  ransomed, 
for  he  might  think  I  was  meditating  an  escape,  and  would 


ESCAPE  313 


order  extra  precautions  to  be  taken  to  prevent  my  doing  so. 
Will  you  also  see  Ben  Ibyn,  and  thank  him  from  me  for  hav- 
ing written  to  Suleiman  AH  on  my  behalf?  " 


CHAPTER  XIX 

ESCAPE 

GRADUALLY  a  greater  amount  of  liberty  was  given  to 
Gervaise.  Escape  from  Tripoli  was  deemed  impossible, 
especially  as  he  was  supposed  to  be  entirely  ignorant  of 
Arabic.  He  was,  indeed,  scarcely  regarded  now  as  a  slave 
by  the  head  mason,  and  instead  of  being  clad  in  rags  was 
dressed  like  other  overseers.  He  was  no  longer  obliged  to 
walk  with  the  gang  to  and  from  the  palace,  and  was  at  last 
granted  permission  to  go  into  the  town  for  an  hour  or  two 
after  his  work  was  over,  instead  of  returning  direct  to  the 
prison.  The  first  time  this  permission  was  given  to  him  he 
placed  himself  on  the  road  by  which  Ben  Ibyn  would  leave  the 
town,  choosing  a  quiet  spot  where  the  meeting  would  not  be 
observed.  Gervaise  had  for  some  time  taken  to  staining  his 
face,  hands,  and  legs  with  walnut  juice,  beginning  with  a  weak 
solution,  and  very  gradually  increasing  the  strength  until  he 
had  reached  a  shade  approximating  to  that  of  the  lighter- 
coloured  portion  of  the  population.  The  head  mason  had  on 
one  occasion  noticed  it,  and  said, — 

"  The  sun  is  darkening  your  skin,  Gervaise,  until  you  might 
verily  pass  as  a  Moor." 

Gervaise  detected  an  expression  of  doubt  in  the  tone  the 
officer  had  spoken  to  the  interpreter,  and  replied  at  once, — 

"  It  is  not  altogether  the  sun.  Since  I  have  obtained  per- 
mission to  come  to  my  work  alone,  I  have  taken  to  slightly 
darkening  my  skin,  in  order  to  go  to  and  fro  unmolested,  and 


314  A   KNIGHT   OF  THE  WHITfc  CROSS 

free  from  the  insults  that  the  boys  and  beggars  hurl  at  Chris- 
tians." 

The  master  mason  nodded  approvingly  when  the  answer 
was  translated  to  him. 

"It  is  a  wise  step,"  he  said;  "for  truly  the  hatred  of 
Christians  is  very  strong  among  the  lower  classes,  especially 
since  it  became  known  that  the  galleys  that  sailed  from  here 
nearly  two  years  ago  were,  with  all  the  fleet  from  which  so 
much  was  expected,  utterly  destroyed.  It  is  well,  then,  that 
you  should  pass  unnoticed,  for  were  there  a  tumult  in  the 
street  you  might  lose  your  life,  and  I  should  lose  the  best 
labour-overseer  I  have  ever  had.' ' 

Thus,  then,  as  Gervaise  walked  through  the  streets  on  the 
first  occasion  of  obtaining  his  liberty,  he  attracted  no  attention 
whatever.  When  he  saw  Ben  Ibyn  approaching  he  stepped 
out  to  meet  him.  The  merchant  looked  in  his  face,  but  for  a 
moment  failed  to  recognise  him,  then  he  exclaimed  suddenly, — 

"  It  is  Gervaise  !  Ah,  my  son,  I  am  indeed  rejoiced  to  see 
you.  We  have  spoken  of  you  so  often  at  home,  and  sorely  did 
my  wife  and  daughters  grieve  when  you  were  torn  from  us.  I 
did  not  dare  to  send  any  message  to  you,  for  the  sultan  pre- 
tended great  anger  against  me,  and  used  the  opportunity  to 
squeeze  me  hardly ;  but  I  have  frequently  made  inquiries 
about  you,  and  was  glad  indeed  to  find  that  even  in  prison 
you  received  promotion  ;  had  it  been  otherwise — had  I  found 
that  you  were  in  misery — I  would  have  endeavoured,  what- 
ever the  risk,  to  aid  you  to  escape." 

"I  have  indeed  nothing  to  complain  of,  and  was  sorry  to 
learn  that  you  had  suffered  on  my  account.  Have  you  ever 
learned  how  it  came  about  that  I  was  denounced? " 

' '  No,  indeed ;  I  would  have  given  much  to  know,  and  assured- 
ly the  dog,  whoever  he  was,  should  have  been  made  to  suffer. ' ' 

"  It  was  Hassan.  The  villain  met  me  when  I  was  with  the 
gang,  and  boasted  that  it  was  he  who  had  sent  me  there.  He 
had  told  the  news  to  some  official,  who  had,  of  course,  repeated 


ESCAPE  315 

it  to  the  sultan ;  doubtless  he  concealed  his  own  share  in  the 
matter,  otherwise  he  too  would,  next  time  he  returned  here, 
have  had  to  pay  for  his  part  in  it." 

"  I  will  make  him  pay  more  heavily  than  the  sultan  would," 
Ben  Ibyn  said  sternly ;  "  I  will  speak  to  my  friends  among  the 
merchants,  and  henceforth  no  Berber  will  buy  aught  from  him ; 
and  we  have  hitherto  been  his  best  customers.  But  let  us  not 
waste  our  time  in  speaking  of  this  wretch.  How  comes  it  that 
you  are  walking  freely  in  the  streets  of  Tripoli  ?  I  can  see  that 
your  face  is  stained,  although  you  are  no  longer  a  Nubian." 

Gervaise  told  him  how  it  was  that  he  was  free  to  walk  in  the 
city  after  his  work  was  done. 

"  I  shall  now,"  he  went  on,  "  be  able  to  carry  out  any  plan 
of  escape  that  may  occur  to  me ;  but  before  I  leave,  as  I  shall 
certainly  do  ere  long,  I  mean  to  settle  my  score  with  Hassan, 
and  I  pray  you  to  send  one  of  the  men  who  were  with  me  in 
the  galley,  and  whom  you  took  into  your  employment,  directly 
you  hear  that  his  ship  is  in  harbour.  Do  not  give  him  either 
a  note  or  a  message  :  bid  him  simply  place  himself  in  the  road 
between  the  prison  gate  and  the  palace,  and  look  fixedly  at  me  as 
I  pass.  I  shall  know  it  is  a  signal  that  Hassan  is  in  the  port." 

"Can  I  aid  you  in  your  flight?     I  will  willingly  do  so." 

"All  that  I  shall  need  is  the  garb  of  a  peasant,"  Gervaise 
said.  "  I  might  buy  one  unnoticed  ;  but,  in  the  first  place,  I 
have  no  money,  and  in  the  second,  when  it  is  known  that  I 
have  escaped,  the  trader  might  recall  the  fact  that  one  of  the 
slave  overseers  had  purchased  a  suit  of  him." 

"  The  dress  of  an  Arab  would  be  the  best,"  the  merchant 
said.  "That  I  will  procure  and  hold  in  readiness  for  you. 
On  the  day  when  I  send  you  word  that  Hassan  is  here,  I  will 
see  that  the  gate  of  my  garden  is  unbarred  at  night,  and  will 
place  the  garments  down  just  behind  it.  You  mean,  I  suppose, 
to  travel  by  land  ?  ' ' 

"  I  shall  do  so  for  some  distance.  Were  I  to  steal  a  boat 
from  the  port,  it  would  be  missed  in  the  morning,  and  I  should 


316  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

be  overtaken.  I  shall  therefore  go  along  the  coast  for  some 
distance  and  get  a  boat  at  one  of  the  villages,  choosing  my 
time  when  there  is  a  brisk  wind,  and  when  I  may  be  able  to 
get  well  beyond  any  risk  of  being  overtaken.  Now,  Ben  Ibyn, 
I  will  leave  you  ;  it  were  better  that  we  should  not  meet  again, 
lest  some  suspicion  might  fall  upon  you  of  having  aided  in  my 
escape.  I  cannot  thank  you  too  much  for  all  your  past  kind- 
ness, and  shall  ever  bear  a  grateful  remembrance  of  yourself 
and  your  family." 

"Perhaps  it  were  better  so,"  Ben  Ibyn  said;  "  for  if  the 
Moors  can  find  any  excuse  for  plundering  us,  they  do  so. 
Have  you  heard  the  news  that  the  Sultan  of  Turkey's  expedi- 
tion for  the  capture  of  Rhodes  is  all  but  complete,  and  will 
assuredly  sail  before  many  weeks  have  passed  ?  " 

"  I  have  not  heard  it,"  Gervaise  replied  ;  "  and  trust  that 
I  may  be  in  time  to  bear  my  share  in  the  defence.  However, 
the  blow  has  been  so  often  threatened  that  it  may  be  some  time 
before  it  falls." 

"  May  Allah  bless  you,  my  son,  and  take  you  safely  back  to 
your  friends !  Be  assured  that  you  shall  have  notice  as  soon 
as  I  know  that  Hassan  has  returned,  and  you  shall  have  the 
bundle  with  all  that  is  needful,  behind  my  gate." 

Another  two  months  passed.  Gervaise  looked  in  vain  for 
Ben  Ibyn's  messenger  as  he  went  to  and  from  the  palace,  and 
chafed  terribly  at  the  delay,  when,  for  aught  he  knew,  the 
Turkish  fleet  might  already  have  brought  Mahomet's  army  to 
Rhodes.  At  last,  as  he  came  back  from  work,  he  saw  with  in- 
tense satisfaction  one  of  the  men,  whose  face  he  recognised, 
leaning  carelessly  against  the  wall.  The  man  gave  no  sign  of 
recognition,  but  looked  at  him  earnestly  for  a  minute,  and  then 
sauntered  off  up  the  street.  Gervaise  went  up  into  the  town 
as  usual,  walked  about  until  it  became  quite  dark,  and  then 
went  to  the  gate  that  led  into  the  merchant's  garden.  He  found 
that  it  was  unfastened,  and,  opening  it,  he  went  in  and  closed  it 
behind  him.  As  he  did  so  he  started,  for  a  voice  close  by  said, — 


ESCAPE  317 

"Master,  it  is  I,  the  messenger  whom  you  saw  two  hours 
since.  Ben  Ibyn  bade  me  say  that  he  thought  you  might  re- 
quire some  service,  and,  knowing  that  I  could  be  trusted,  bade 
me  wait  for  you  here.  He  thought  that  you  might  possibly 
need  a  messenger  to  Hassan. ' ' 

"The  very  thing,"  Gervaise  exclaimed.  "I  have  been 
puzzling  myself  in  vain  as  to  how  I  could  get  speech  with  him 
in  some  quiet  place ;  but  with  your  assistance  that  will  be 
easy ;  but  first  let  me  put  on  this  disguise. ' ' 

This  was  easily  effected,  even  in  the  dark.  A  loose  flowing 
robe  of  white  cotton,  girt  in  at  the  waist,  a  long  bernouse  with 
hood  to  cover  the  head,  a  sash  with  a  dagger,  and  a  scimitar, 
completed  the  disguise. 

"  Here  is  a  pouch,"  the  man  said,  "  with  money  for  your 
journey,  and  a  long  sword,  which  he  says  you  can  hang  at 
your  back  beneath  your  bernouse." 

Gervaise  gave  an  exclamation  of  pleasure.  By  its  length  and 
weight  he  was  sure  that  the  weapon  must  have  been  the  prop- 
erty of  a  Christian  knight. 

"  Shall  I  carry  the  message  this  evening  ?  "  the  man  asked. 
"It  is  early  still,  and  it  were  best  that  you  should  not  linger 
in  the  city,  where  there  is  sure  to  be  a  strict  search  for  you  in 
the  morning." 

"  But  perhaps  he  may  recognise  your  face  ?  " 

"  It  is  blackened,  my  lord,  and  I  am  dressed  as  you  were 
when  with  Ben  Ibyn." 

"  Let  us  settle  our  plans,  then,  before  we  sally  out  from 
here  j  we  could  not  find  a  safer  place  for  talking.  What  mes- 
sage, think  you,  would  be  the  most  likely  to  tempt  Hassan  to 
come  ashore?  You  do  not  know  what  spoil  he  has  brought?  " 

"  No  ;  besides,  if  a  merchant  wanted  to  buy  he  would  go  on 
board  to  inspect  Hassan's  wares.  We  must  have  something  to 
sell.  It  must  be  something  tempting,  and  something  that  must 
be  disposed  of  secretly.  I  might  tell  him  that  my  employer — 
and  I  would  mention  some  merchant  whose  name  would  carry 


318  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

weight  with  him — has  received  from  the  interior  a  large  con- 
signment of  slaves,  among  whom  are  three  or  four  girls,  who 
would  fetch  high  prices  in  Egypt,  and  as  he  believes  they  have 
been  captured  from  a  tribe  within  the  limits  of  the  sultan's  ter- 
ritory, he  is  anxious  to  get  rid  of  them,  and  will  either  dispose 
of  them  all  cheaply  in  a  lot,  or  will  hand  them  over  to  him  to 
take  to  Egypt  to  sell,  giving  him  a  large  commission  for  carry- 
ing them  there  and  disposing  of  them." 

"  I  do  not  like  tempting  even  an  enemy  by  stories  that  are 
untrue,"  Gervaise  said  doubtfully. 

"  I  have  no  scruples  that  way,"  the  man  said,  with  a  laugh ; 
"  and  it  is  I  who  shall  tell  the  story,  and  not  you." 

Gervaise  shook  his  head. 

"  Could  you  not  say  that  you  came  from  one  who  owes  him 
a  heavy  debt  and  desires  to  pay  him  ?  " 

"  I  do  not  think  that  would  bring  him  ashore.  Hassan 
doubtless  trades  for  ready  money,  and  must  be  well  aware  that 
no  one  here  can  be  greatly  in  his  debt.  No,  my  lord  ;  leave 
the  matter  in  my  hands.  I  will  think  of  some  story  before  I 
go  on  board  that  will  fetch  him  ashore.  But  first  we  must  set- 
tle where  I  am  to  bring  him  ;  there  are  some  deserted  spots 
near  the  wall  on  the  east  side  of  the  town." 

"I  know  where  you  mean,"  Gervaise  agreed;  "  let  us  go 
in  that  direction  at  once,  for  the  sooner  you  are  off  the  better. ' ' 

In  half  an  hour  a  spot  was  fixed  on,  near  some  huts  that 
had  fallen  into  ruin.  Here  Gervaise  seated  himself  on  a  sand 
heap,  while  the  man  hurried  away.  The  moon  had  just  risen, 
it  being  but  three  days  since  it  was  at  its  full.  The  night 
was  quiet ;  sounds  of  music,  laughter,  and  occasional  shouts 
came  faintly  from  the  town.  Seated  where  he  was,  Gervaise 
could  see  the  port  and  the  ships  lying  there.  Half  an  hour 
later  he  saw  a  boat  row  off  to  one  of  them,  which  he  had 
already  singled  out,  from  its  size  and  general  appearance,  as 
being  that  of  Hassan  ;  ten  minutes  later  he  saw  it  returning. 
At  that  distance  separate  figures  could  not  be  made  out,  but 


ESCAPE  319 

it  seemed  to  him  that  it  loomed  larger  than  before,  and  he 
thought  that  certainly  one,  if  not  more,  persons,  were  returning 
with  his  messenger.  Presently  he  heard  men  approaching ; 
then  Hassan's  voice  came  distinctly  to  his  ears. 

' '  How  much  farther  are  you  going  to  take  me  ?  Remember, 
I  warned  you  that  unless  I  found  that  my  journey  repaid  me, 
it  would  be  bad  for  you." 

"It  is  but  a  few  yards  farther,  my  lord.  There  is  my 
master  the  sheik  of  the  Beni  Kalis  awaiting  you." 

Gervaise  rose  to  his  feet  as  Hassan  and  two  of  his  crew 
came  up. 

"  Now,"  the  former  said  roughly,  "  where  have  you  bestowed 
these  captives  you  want  to  sell  me  ?  ' ' 

' '  Will  you  please  to  follow  me  into  this  courtyard  ?  ' '  Ger- 
vaise said. 

He  had,  while  waiting,  reconnoitred  the  neighbourhood, 
and  found  an  enclosure  with  the  walls  still  perfect,  and  had 
determined  to  bring  Hassan  there,  in  order  to  prevent  him 
from  taking  to  flight.  Hassan  entered  it  unsuspectingly,  fol- 
lowed by  his  two  men.  Gervaise  fell  back  a  little,  so  as  to 
place  himself  between  them  and  the  entrance.  Then  he  threw 
back  the  hood  of  his  bernouse. 

"  Do  you  recognise  me,  Hassan  ?  "  he  said  sternly.  "  I  am 
the  captive  whom  you  beat  almost  to  death.  I  told  you  that 
some  day  I  would  kill  you ;  but  even  now  I  am  willing  to 
forgive  you  and  to  allow  you  to  depart  in  peace,  if  you  will 
restore  the  amulet  you  took  from  me." 

The  corsair  gave  a  howl  of  rage. 

"  Christian  dog  !  "  he  exclaimed.  "  You  thought  to  lead 
me  into  a  trap,  but  you  have  fallen  into  one  yourself.  You 
reckoned  that  I  should  come  alone  ;  but  I  suspected  there 
was  something  hidden  behind  the  story  of  that  black,  and  so 
brought  two  of  my  crew  with  me.  Upon  him,  men  !  Cut  him 
down  !  "  So  saying,  he  drew  his  scimitar,  and  sprang  furiously 
upon  Gervaise.  The  latter  stepped  back  into  the  centre  of  the 


320  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

gateway,  so  as  to  prevent  the  men,  who  had  also  drawn  their 
swords,  passing  to  attack  him  from  behind.  He  had  undone 
the  clasp  of  his  bernouse,  and  allowed  it  to  fall  to  the  ground 
as  he  addressed  Hassan,  and  his  long  sword  flashed  in  the 
moonlight  as  the  corsair  sprang  forward. 

Hassan  was  a  good  swordsman,  and  his  ferocious  bravery 
had  rendered  him  one  of  the  most  dreaded  of  the  Moorish 
rovers.  Inferior  in  strength  to  Gervaise,  he  was  as  active  as  a 
cat,  and  he  leapt  back  with  the  spring  of  a  panther,  avoiding 
the  sweeping  blow  with  which  Gervaise  had  hoped  to  finish 
the  conflict  at  once  ;  the  latter  found  himself  therefore  engaged 
in  a  desperate  fight  with  his  three  assailants.  So  furiously  did 
they  attack  him  that,  foot  by  foot,  he  was  forced  to  give 
ground.  As  he  stepped  through  the  gateway  one  of  the  pirates 
sprang  past  him,  but  as  he  did  so,  a  figure  leapt  out  from  be- 
yond the  wall,  and  plunged  a  dagger  into  his  back,  while  at 
the  same  moment,  by  cutting  down  another  pirate,  Gervaise 
rid  himself  of  one  of  his  assailants  in  front ;  but  as  he  did  so, 
he  himself  received  a  severe  wound  on  the  left  shoulder  from 
Hassan,  who,  before  he  could  again  raise  his  weapon,  sprang 
upon  him,  and  tried  to  hurl  him  to  the  ground. 

Gervaise's  superior  weight  saved  him  from  falling,  though 
he  staggered  back  some  paces  ;  then  his  heel  caught  against  a 
stone,  and  he  fell,  dragging  Hassan  to  the  ground  with  him. 
Tightly  clasped  in  each  other's  arms,  they  rolled  over  and  over. 
Gervaise  succeeded  at  last  in  getting  the  upper  hand,  but  as 
he  did  so  Hassan  twisted  his  right  arm  free,  snatched  the 
dagger  from  Gervaise's  girdle,  and  struck  furiously  at  him. 
Gervaise,  who  had  half  risen  to  his  knees,  was  unable  to  avoid 
the  blow,  but  threw  himself  forward,  his  weight  partly  pinning 
the  corsair's  shoulders  to  the  ground,  and  the  blow  passed 
behind  him,  inflicting  but  a  slight  wound  in  the  back  ;  then, 
with  his  right  hand,  which  was  now  free,  he  grasped  Hassan 
by  the  throat  with  a  grip  of  iron.  The  pirate  struggled  con- 
vulsively for  a  moment,  then  his  left  hand  released  his  grasp 


GERVAISE  GRASPED   HASSAN   BY   THE  THROAT  WITH   A  GRIP   OF   IRON. 


ESCAPE  321 

of  his  opponent's  wrist.  A  minute  later  Gervaise  rose  to  his 
feet :  the  pirate  was  dead. 

Gervaise  stooped  and  raised  the  fallen  man's  head  from  the 
ground,  felt  for  the  chain,  pulled  up  Claudia's  gage,  and 
placed  it  round  his  own  neck ;  then  he  turned  to  his  guide. 

"  I  have  to  thank  you  for  my  life,"  he  said,  holding  out  his 
hand  to  him.  "  It  would  have  gone  hard  with  me  if  that  fel- 
low had  attacked  me  from  behind.  I  had  not  bargained  for 
three  of  them. ' ' 

"  I  could  not  help  it,  my  lord.  It  was  not  until  Hassan 
had  stepped  down  into  the  boat  that  I  knew  he  was  going  to 
take  any  one  with  him  ;  then  he  suddenly  told  two  of  his  men 
to  take  their  places  by  him,  saying  to  me,  as  he  did  so,  '  I 
know  not  whether  this  message  is  a  snare  ;  but  mind,  if  I  see 
any  signs  of  treachery,  your  life  at  any  rate  will  pay  the  for- 
feit.' I  knew  not  what  to  do,  and  indeed  could  do  nothing; 
but,  knowing  my  lord's  valour,  I  thought  that,  even  against 
these  odds,  you  might  conquer  with  such  poor  aid  as  I  could 
give  you." 

"  It  was  not  poor  aid  at  all,"  Gervaise  said  heartily. 
"  Greatly  am  I  indebted  to  you,  and  sorry  indeed  am  I,  that 
I  am  unable  to  reward  you  now  for  the  great  service  that  you 
have  rendered  me." 

"  Do  not  trouble  about  that,  my  lord.  I  am  greatly  mis- 
taken if  I  do  not  find  in  the  sashes  of  these  three  villains  suffi- 
cient to  repay  me  amply  for  my  share  in  this  evening's  work. 
And  now,  my  lord,  I  pray  you  to  linger  not  a  moment.  The 
gates  of  the  town  shut  at  ten  o'clock,  and  it  cannot  be  long 
from  that  hour  now.  But  first,  I  pray  you,  let  me  bind  up 
your  shoulder  ;  your  garment  is  soaked  with  blood." 

"  Fortunately  my  bernouse  will  hide  that;  but  it  were  cer- 
tainly best  to  staunch  the  blood  before  I  start,  for  it  would  be 
hard  for  me  to  get  at  the  wound  myself." 

The  man  took  one  of  the  sashes  of  the  corsairs,  tore  it  into 
strips,  and  bandaged  the  wound  ;  then  with  another  he  made 


A    KNIGHT   OF   THE    WHITE    CROSS 

a  sling  for  the  arm.  As  he  took  off  the  sashes  a  leather  bag 
dropped  from  each,  and  there  was  a  chink  of  metal.  He 
placed  them  in  his  girdle,  saying,  "  I  shall  have  time  to  count 
them  when  I  get  back." 

Gervaise  sheathed  his  sword,  and  put  on  the  bernouse,  pull- 
ing the  hood  well  over  his  head ;  then,  with  a  few  more  words 
of  thanks,  started  for  the  gate,  leaving  the  man  to  search  Has- 
san's girdle. 

The  gate  was  a  quarter  of  a  mile  distant.  Gervaise  passed 
through  with  the  usual  Arabic  salutation  to  the  sentry,  and 
with  difficulty  repressed  a  shout  of  exultation  as  he  left  Tripoli 
behind  him. 

Following  the  coast  road  he  walked  till  daylight ;  then  he 
left  it  and  lay  down  among  the  sand-hills  for  five  or  six  hours. 
He  calculated  that  no  pursuit  would  be  begun  until  midday. 
His  absence  was  not  likely  to  be  noticed  until  the  gangs  be- 
gan work  in  the  morning,  when  an  alarm  would  be  given. 
The  sentries  at  the  gates  on  the  previous  evening  would  be 
questioned,  and  when  it  was  found  that  no  one  answering  to 
his  description  had  passed  out  before  these  were  closed,  there 
would  be  a  rigid  search  throughout  the  city  and  port.  The 
vessels  would  all  be  examined,  and  the  boatmen  questioned  as 
to  whether  any  craft  was  missing.  Not  until  the  search  proved 
absolutely  fruitless  would  it  be  seriously  suspected  that  he  had, 
either  by  passing  through  the  gates  in  disguise,  or  by  scaling 
the  walls,  made  for  the  interior.  None  knew  that  he  could 
speak  Arabic,  and  it  would  be  so  hopeless  an  undertaking  for 
any  one  unacquainted  with  the  language  to  traverse  the  coun- 
try without  being  detected,  that  the  Moors  would  be  slow  to 
believe  that  he  had  embarked  upon  such  adventure.  How- 
ever, when  all  search  for  him  in  the  town  and  in  the  vessels  in 
the  port  proved  fruitless,  doubtless  mounted  men  would  be  de- 
spatched in  all  directions  ;  some  would  take  the  coast  roads, 
while  others  would  ride  into  the  interior  to  warn  the  head 
men  of  the  villages  to  be  on  the  look-out  for  an  escaped  slave. 


ESCAPE  323 

After  a  sleep  of  five  hours,  Gervaise  pursued  his  journey. 
He  had  walked  for  eight  hours,  and  calculated  that  he  must 
be  fully  thirty  miles  from  Tripoli,  and  that  not  until  evening 
would  searchers  overtake  him.  After  walking  four  miles  he 
came  to  a  large  village.  There  he  purchased  a  bag  of  dates, 
sat  down  on  a  stone  bench  by  the  roadside  to  eat  them,  and 
entered  into  conversation  with  two  or  three  Moors  who  saun- 
tered up.  To  these  he  represented  that  he  belonged  to  a  party 
of  his  tribe  who  had  encamped  for  the  day  at  a  short  distance 
from  the  village  in  order  to  rest  their  horses  before  riding  into 
Tripoli,  whither  they  were  proceeding  to  exchange  skins  of 
animals  taken  in  the  chase,  and  some  young  horses,  for  cotton 
clothes,  knives,  and  other  articles  of  barter  with  the  tribes  be- 
yond them. 

After  quenching  his  thirst  at  a  well  in  front  of  the  mosque, 
he  retraced  his  steps  until  beyond  the  village,  then  struck  out 
into  the  country,  made  a  detour,  came  down  into  the  road 
again,  and  continued  his  journey  eastward.  He  walked  until 
nightfall,  and  then  again  lay  down. 

He  was  now  fully  fifty  miles  from  Tripoli,  and  hoped  that 
he  was  beyond  the  point  to  which  horsemen  from  that  town 
would  think  of  pursuing  their  search.  It  was  likely  that  they 
would  not  have  gone  beyond  the  village  at  which  he  had  halt- 
ed on  the  previous  day  ;  for  when  they  learned  from  the  in- 
habitants that  no  stranger,  save  an  Arab,  had  entered  it,  they 
would  content  themselves  with  warning  the  head  man  to  be  on 
the  watch  for  any  stranger  unable  to  speak  their  tongue,  and 
would  not  consider  it  necessary  to  push  their  steps  farther. 

For  four  days  Gervaise  continued  his  journey.  At  each  vil- 
lage through  which  he  passed  he  added  to  his  stock  of  dates, 
until  he  had  as  many  as  he  could  carry  under  his  bernouse 
without  attracting  observation.  He  also  purchased  a  large 
water-bottle,  which  he  slung  round  his  neck. 

All  this  time  the  sea  lay  to  his  left  like  a  sheet  of  glass,  and 
he  knew  that  until  a  change  of  weather  occurred,  it  was  use- 


324  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

less  for  him  to  attempt  to  escape  by  boat.  On  the  fifth  day 
there  were  signs  of  a  change.  He  saw  a  dark  line  far  out  at 
sea ;  it  came  across  the  water  rapidly,  and  presently  a  gentle 
breeze  began  to  blow  from  the  north-west ;  it  gradually  in- 
creased in  strength,  and  when,  in  the  afternoon,  he  stopped  at 
a  village,  the  waves  were  breaking  upon  the  shore. 

After  repeating  his  usual  story,  he  sauntered  down  to  the 
water's  edge.  There  were  several  boats  hauled  up,  and  a  hun- 
dred yards  out  two  or  three  larger  craft  were  lying  at  anchor. 
He  entered  into  conversation  with  some  of  the  fishermen,  and 
his  questions  as  to  the  boats  led  them  to  believe  him  altogether 
ignorant  of  the  sea.  The  craft  were,  they  told  him,  used 
sometimes  for  fishing,  but  they  often  made  voyages  to  towns 
along  the  coast  with  dates  and  other  produce.  Each  boat  car- 
ried a  single  short  mast,  to  the  top  of  which  was  attached  a 
long  tapering  spar,  on  which  the  sail  was  furled. 

Gervaise  knew  that  these  small  feluccas  were  generally  fast 
sailers  and  fair  sea  boats,  and  resolved  to  seize  one  of  them, 
trusting  that  when  once  the  sail  was  shaken  out  he  would  be 
able  to  manage  it  single-handed.  Accustomed  to  boats,  he 
picked  out  that  which  he  thought  would  be  the  fastest,  and 
then  walked  away  for  half  a  mile,  and  lay  down  to  sleep  until 
the  village  was  silent  for  the  night.  He  had  with  him  some 
oaten  cakes  he  had  bought  there,  a  string  of  fish  he  had  pur- 
chased from  the  boatmen,  and  with  these  and  the  dates  he 
thought  he  could  manage  for  four  or  five  days  at  least.  As 
to  water,  he  could  only  hope  that  he  should  find  a  supply  on 
board  the  boat.  When  he  judged  it  to  be  about  ten  o'clock 
he  went  down  to  the  shore  again,  took  off  his  clothes  and 
made  them  into  a  bundle ;  then,  wading  out  into  the  water  to 
within  fifty  yards  of  the  felucca,  swam  off  to  it,  towing  the 
bundle  behind  him. 

He  had  no  difficulty  in  climbing  on  board,  and  after  dress- 
ing himself  in  the  clothes  he  had  worn  at  Tripoli,  and  had 
kept  on  underneath  the  Arab  attire,  he  pulled  the  head  rope 


ESCAPE  325 

until  the  craft  was  nearly  over  the  anchor.  He  then  loosened 
the  line  that  brailed  up  the  sail,  got  the  stone  that  served  as 
an  anchor  on  board,  hauled  the  sheet  aft,  and  took  his  place 
at  the  tiller.  The  wind  had  dropped  a  good  deal  with  the 
sun,  but  there  was  still  sufficient  air  to  send  the  light  craft 
fast  through  the  water.  He  steered  out  for  a  time,  and  then, 
when  he  thought  himself  a  good  mile  from  the  shore,  headed 
east.  By  the  appearance  of  the  water  as  it  glanced  past,  he 
thought  that  he  must  be  making  from  five  to  six  miles  an  hour, 
and  when  the  sun  rose  at  five  o'clock,  believed  that  he  was 
nearly  forty  miles  on  his  way.  He  now  fastened  the  tiller 
with  a  rope  and  proceeded  to  overhaul  the  craft. 

It  was  decked  over  forward  only,  and  he  crept  into  the 
cabin,  which  was  little  more  than  three  feet  high.  The  first 
thing  his  eye  lit  on  was  a  bulky  object  hanging  against  the 
side,  and  covered  with  a  thick  black  blanket  of  Arab  manu- 
facture. Lifting  this,  he  saw,  as  he  expected,  that  the  object 
beneath  it  was  a  large  waterskin  well  filled ;  the  blanket  had 
evidently  been  placed  over  it  to  keep  it  cool  when  the  sun 
streamed  down  on  the  deck  above  it.  There  was  also  a  large 
bag  of  dates,  and  another  of  flat  cakes,  and  he  guessed  that 
these  had  all  been  put  on  board  the  evening  before,  in  readi- 
ness for  a  start  in  the  morning.  This  relieved  him  of  his 
chief  anxiety,  for  he  had  been  unable  to  think  of  any  plan 
for  replenishing  his  supply,  or  to  concoct  a  likely  tale  that, 
were  he  obliged  to  go  on  shore,  would  account  for  his  being 
alone  in  a  craft  of  that  size. 

The  wind  increased  again  after  sunrise,  and  being  unable  to 
reef  the  sail  single-handed  he  managed  partially  to  brail  it  up. 
All  day  the  craft  flew  along  with  the  wind  on  the  quarter, 
making  six  or  seven  miles  an  hour;  and  he  felt  that  by  morn- 
ing he  would  be  well  beyond  pursuit.  On  the  run  he  passed 
several  craft  engaged  in  fishing,  but  these  gave  him  no  uneasi- 
ness. He  had  in  the  morning,  with  some  old  sails  he  found, 
constructed  three  rough  imitations  of  human  figures,  covering 


326  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

one  with  the  Arab  dress  and  another  with  the  bernouse,  and 
had  placed  them  against  the  bulwarks,  so  that  at  a  short  dis- 
tance it  would  appear  that  there  were  three  men  on  board. 
Feeling  confident  that  the  deception  would  not  be  noticed, 
he  kept  his  course  without  swerving,  and  passed  some  of  the 
fishing  boats  within  hailing  distance,  waving  his  hand  and 
shouting  the  usual  Arab  salutation  to  their  crews. 

During  the  day  he  contented  himself  with  eating  some  dates 
and  an  oatmeal  cake  or  two ;  but  at  sunset  he  added  to  this 
two  or  three  fish  that  he  had  split  open  and  hung  up  to  dry  in 
the  sun  and  wind.  There  was  charcoal  on  board,  and  a  flat 
stone  served  as  a  hearth  in  the  bottom  of  the  boat,  but  he  had 
no  means  of  lighting  a  fire,  for  this  the  fishermen  would  have 
brought  off  when  they  came  on  board  in  the  morning.  After 
he  had  finished  his  meal  and  taken  his  place  again  at  the  tiller 
he  altered  his  course.  Hitherto  he  had  been  steering  to  the 
south  of  east,  following  the  line  of  coast,  but  he  now  saw  be- 
fore him  the  projecting  promontory  of  Cape  Mezurata,  which 
marks  the  western  entrance  of  the  great  Gulf  of  Sydra  ;  and 
he  now  directed  his  course  two  points  north  of  east,  so  as  to 
strike  the  opposite  promontory,  known  as  Grenna,  more  than 
a  hundred  miles  away.  The  wind  fell  much  lighter,  and  he 
shook  out  the  sail  to  its  full  extent.  All  night  he  kept  at  his 
post,  but  finding  the  wind  perfectly  steady  he  lashed  the  tiller 
so  as  to  keep  the  boat's  head  in  the  direction  in  which  he  was 
steering,  and  dozed  for  some  hours,  waking  up  occasionally 
to  assure  himself  that  she  was  keeping  her  course. 

At  sunrise  he  indulged  in  a  wash  in  sea  water,  and  felt 
freshened  and  revived.  He  now  kept  a  sharp  look-out  for 
distant  sails,  for  he  was  out  of  the  ordinary  course  a  coaster 
would  take,  and  would  have  attracted  the  attention  of  any 
corsair  coming  out  from  the  land  ;  the  sea,  however,  remained 
clear  of  ships.  All  day  the  felucca  made  rapid  progress,  for 
although  the  wind  freshened,  Gervaise  did  not  lessen  sail  as 
before,  being  now  accustomed  to  the  boat  and  confident  of 


ESCAPE  327 

her  powers.  As  soon  as  the  wind  died  away  again  after  sun- 
set, he  lay  down  for  a  good  sleep,  feeling  this  was  an  absolute 
necessity,  and  knowing  that  before  morning  he  should  be 
obliged  to  keep  a  sharp  look-out  for  land.  He  slept  longer 
than  he  had  intended,  for  the  day  was  breaking  when  he 
opened  his  eyes.  He  sprang  to  his  feet,  and  saw  the  land 
stretching  ahead  of  him  at  a  distance,  as  he  thought,  of  some 
fifteen  miles,  and  at  once  put  the  helm  down  and  bore  more 
to  the  north. 

He  judged,  from  what  he  had  heard  on  the  coast,  that  he 
must  be  nearly  off  Cape  Tejones,  behind  which  lies  the  town 
of  Bengasi,  and  was  confirmed  in  the  belief  on  finding  half  an 
hour  later  that  the  coast,  which  had  run  nearly  north  and 
south,  trended  sharply  away  to  the  north-east.  All  day  long 
he  kept  about  the  same  distance  from  the  land,  and  at  night, 
instead  of  keeping  on  his  course,  brailed  up  the  sail  entirely, 
and  allowed  the  vessel  to  drift,  as  he  knew  that  before  morn- 
ing he  should  lose  the  coast  if  he  continued  as  he  was  going. 
He  slept  without  moving  until  daylight,  and  then  saw,  to  his 
satisfaction,  by  means  of  landmarks  he  had  noticed  the  evening 
before,  that  the  boat  had  drifted  but  a  few  miles  during  the 
night.  As  the  day  went  on,  he  saw  that  the  coast-line  was 
now  east  and  west,  and  felt  that  he  must  be  off  the  most  north- 
erly point  of  the  promontory  ;  he  accordingly  laid  his  course  to 
the  north-east,  which  would  take  him  close  to  Cape  Saloman, 
the  most  easterly  point  of  Crete,  and  from  two  hundred  and 
fifty  to  three  hundred  miles  distant. 

For  twenty-four  hours  he  sailed  quietly  on,  the  wind  drop- 
ping lighter  and  lighter  ;  then  it  suddenly  died  out  altogether ; 
for  some  hours  there  was  not  a  breath  to  stir  the  surface  of  the 
water,  and  the  heat  was  stifling.  Gervaise  slept  for  some 
time  ;  when  he  awoke  the  same  stillness  reigned,  but  there  was 
a  change  in  the  appearance  of  the  sky  ;  its  brightness  was 
dulled  by  a  faint  mist,  while,  although  the  sea  was  of  a  glassy 
smoothness,  there  was  an  imperceptible  swell  that  caused  the 


628  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

felucca  to  sway  uneasily.  Gervaise  had  sufficient  experience 
of  the  Levant  to  know  that  these  signs  were  ominous  of  a 
change,  and  he  at  once  set  to  work  to  prepare  for  it.  Al- 
though he  saw  that  it  would  be  difficult  for  him  unaided  to 
hoist  the  long  spar  back  into  its  place,  he  decided  to  lower  it. 
This  was  not  difficult,  as  its  weight  brought  it  down  on  to  the 
deck  as  soon  as  he  slackened  the  halliards  ;  he  unhooked  it  from 
the  block,  and  then  lashed  the  sail  securely  to  it.  When  he 
had  done  this  he  looked  round.  A  bank  of  dark  clouds  lay 
across  the  horizon  to  the  north-west,  and  in  a  short  time  he 
could  see  that  this  was  rising  rapidly. 

Before  taking  down  the  spar  and  sail,  he  had  deliberated  as 
to  whether  it  would  be  better  to  run  before  the  coming  gale  or 
to  lie  to,  and  had  decided  on  the  latter  alternative,  as,  were 
it  to  continue  to  blow  long,  he  might  be  driven  on  to  the 
Egyptian  coast.  Moreover,  the  felucca's  bow  was  much  higher 
out  of  water  than  the  stern,  and  he  thought  that  she  would  ride 
over  the  waves  with  greater  safety  than  she  would  did  they 
sweep  down  upon  her  stern.  He  had  heard  that  the  Greeks, 
when  caught  in  a  sudden  gale  in  small  boats,  often  lashed  the 
oars  together,  threw  them  overboard  with  a  rope  attached,  and 
rode  to  them  safely  through  a  sea  that  would  otherwise  have 
overwhelmed  them.  After  much  consideration  as  to  what  had 
best  be  done,  he  took  the  anchor  rope,  which  was  some  sixty 
yards  in  length,  fastened  one  end  to  each  end  of  the  spar,  and 
then  lashed  the  middle  of  the  rope  to  the  bow  of  the  felucca ; 
then,  using  an  oar  as  a  lever,  he  with  great  labour  managed  to 
launch  the  spar  over  the  bow,  with  the  sail  still  attached  to  it. 

When  he  had  completed  this,  he  looked  round  at  the  state 
of  the  weather.  The  clouds  had  risen  so  fast  that  their  edge 
was  nearly  overhead,  spanning  the  sky  like  a  great  arch.  Ahead 
of  him  it  seemed  almost  as  black  as  night.  He  had  not  been 
out  in  many  of  the  gales  that  at  times  sweep  the  eastern  waters 
of  the  Mediterranean  with  terrible  violence,  but  had  seen 
enough  of  them  to  know  that  it  was  no  ordinary  one  that  he 


ESCAPE  329 

was  about  to  encounter.  He  looked  over  the  bow  ;  the  spar 
at  present  was  lying  in  contact  with  the  stem.  With  an  oar 
he  pushed  it  across  so  as  to  be  at  right  angles  with  the  craft, 
and  then,  there  being  nothing  else  to  do,  sat  down  and  waited 
for  the  storm  to  burst.  In  a  short  time  he  heard  a  dull 
moaning  sound,  a  puff  of  wind  struck  the  boat,  but  in  a  few 
seconds  died  out ;  it  was  sufficient  to  give  the  light  craft  stern 
way,  and  she  drifted  backwards,  the  rope  tightening,  until  the 
spar  lay  across  her  bows,  and  some  twenty  yards  away. 

The  dull  moaning  had  grown  louder  ;  and  now  ahead  of  him 
he  saw  a  white  line.  It  approached  with  extraordinary  rapid- 
ity. Knowing  the  fury  with  which  it  would  burst  upon  him,  he 
leapt  down,  and  stood  at  the  entrance  to  the  cabin,  with  his 
head  just  above  the  deck.  With  a  deafening  roar  the  wind  struck 
the  boat,  which  staggered  as  if  she  had  on  her  full  course 
struck  on  a  rock,  while  a  shower  of  spray  flew  over  her.  Half 
blinded  and  deafened,  Gervaise  crawled  into  the  cabin,  closed 
the  door,  and  lay  down  there ;  whatever  happened,  there  was 
nothing  he  could  do.  He  was  soon  conscious  that  the  spar  and 
sail  were  doing  their  work,  for  the  boat  still  lay  head  to  wind. 
The  noise  overhead  and  around  was  deafening ;  above  the  howl 
of  the  wind  could  be  heard  the  creaking  of  the  timbers,  and 
the  boat  seemed  to  shiver  as  each  fresh  gust  struck  her. 

In  half  an  hour  he  looked  out  again.  There  was,  as  yet,  but 
little  sea ;  the  force  of  the  wind  seemed  to  flatten  the  water, 
and  the  instant  a  wave  lifted  its  head  it  was  cut  off  as  if  by  a 
knife,  and  carried  away  in  spray.  The  boat  herself  was  mov- 
ing rapidly  through  the  water,  dragging  the  spar  behind  her, 
and  Gervaise  almost  trembled  at  the  thought  of  the  speed  at 
which  she  would  have  flown  along  had  it  not  been  for  the  re- 
straint of  the  floating  anchor.  Gradually  the  sea  got  up,  but 
the  light  craft  rode  easily  over  it,  and  Gervaise,  after  com- 
mending his  safety  to  God,  lay  down,  and  was  soon  fast  asleep. 
In  spite  of  the  motion  of  the  vessel,  he  slept  soundly  for  many 
hours.  When  he  awoke  he  opened  the  cabin  door  and  looked 


330  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

out.  A  tremendous  sea  was  running,  but  he  thought  the  wind, 
although  so  strong  that  he  could  scarce  lift  his  head  above  the 
shelter  of  the  bulwark,  was  less  violent  than  it  had  been  when 
it  first  broke  upon  him.  He  saw  to  his  satisfaction  that  the 
felucca  breasted  the  waves  lightly,  and  that  although  envel- 
oped in  spray  she  took  no  green  water  over  the  bows. 

The  spar  and  sail  acted  not  only  as  a  floating  anchor,  but 
as  a  breakwater,  and  the  white-crested  waves,  which  came  on 
as  if  they  would  break  upon  the  boat,  seemed  robbed  of  half 
their  violence  by  the  obstruction  to  their  course,  and  passed 
under  the  felucca  without  breaking.  For  forty-eight  hours 
the  gale  continued  ;  at  the  end  of  that  time  it  ceased  almost 
as  suddenly  as  it  had  begun.  The  sun  shone  brightly  out, 
the  clouds  cleared  entirely  away.  It  was  some  hours  before 
the  sea  went  down  sufficiently  for  Gervaise  to  attempt  to  get 
the  spar  on  deck  again.  It  was  a  heavy  task,  taxing  his 
strength  to  the  utmost,  but  after  a  deal  of  labour  it  was  got  on 
board,  and  then  raised  to  its  position  at  the  mast-head  ;  the 
sail  was  shaken  out,  and  the  felucca  again  put  on  her  course. 


CHAPTER   XX 

BELEAGUERED 

ONE  morning  towards  the  end  of  May,  1480,  Sir  John  Bos- 
well  was  standing  with  some  other  knights  on  St.  Stephen's 
Hill,  near  the  city,  having  hurried  up  as  soon  as  a  column  of 
smoke  from  a  bonfire  lighted  by  the  look-out  there,  gave  the 
news  that  the  Turkish  fleet  was  at  last  in  sight.  A  similar 
warning  had  been  given  a  month  previously,  but  the  fleet  had 
sailed  past  the  island,  being  bound  for  Phineka,  which  was  the 
rendezvous  where  Mahomet's  great  armament  was  to  assemble. 
There  could  be  but  little  doubt  that  the  long-expected  storm 


BELEAGUERED  331 

was  this  time  about  to  burst.  The  fleet  now  seen  approaching 
numbered  a  hundred  and  sixty  large  ships,  besides  a  great 
number  of  small  craft,  conveying  a  force  variously  estimated  at 
from  seventy  to  a  hundred  thousand  men. 

"  'Tis  a  mighty  fleet,"  Sir  John  said  ;  "  and  the  worst  of 
it  is  that  we  know  there  are  more  to  follow  ;  still,  I  doubt  not 
we  shall  send  them  back  defeated.  Our  defences  are  all  com- 
plete ;  our  recent  peace  with  Egypt  has  enabled  us  to  fill  up 
our  magazines  with  provisions  of  all  kinds ;  the  inhabitants  of 
the  Island  have  had  ample  warning  to  move  into  the  town, 
carrying  with  them  everything  of  value ;  so  the  Turks  will  ob- 
tain but  little  plunder,  and  will  be  able  to  gather  no  means  of 
subsistence  on  the  island,  as  every  animal  has  been  driven 
within  the  walls,  and  even  the  unripe  corn  has  been  reaped 
and  brought  in.  However  long  the  siege  lasts,  we  need  be  in 
no  fear  of  being  reduced  to  sore  straits  for  food.  Look  over 
there.  There  is  a  small  craft  under  sail,  and  it  comes  not 
from  the  direction  of  Phineka.  See  !  one  of  the  Turkish  gal- 
leys has  separated  from  the  rest  and  is  making  off  in  that  direc- 
tion. It  may  be  that  the  little  craft  contains  one  or  two  of 
our  comrades  who  are  late  in  coming  to  join  us." 

"  It  may  well  be  so,  Sir  Johh,  for  they  have  been  straggling 
in  by  twos  and  threes  for  the  last  month." 

"  I  will  get  the  grand  master's  leave  to  put  out  in  one  of  the 
galleys,"  Sir  John  said,  "  for,  by  the  way  they  are  bearing,  the 
Turks  will  cut  the  little  craft  off  before  she  can  gain  the  port." 

He  hurried  to  D'Aubusson,  who  was  standing  a  short  dis- 
tance apart  from  the  others,  gazing  at  the  Turkish  fleet.  A 
minute  later  he  was  running  down  the  hill  to  the  town,  accom- 
panied by  three  or  four  other  knights ;  they  made  direct  for 
the  outer  port,  where  two  galleys  were  lying  in  readiness, 
leapt  on  board  one  of  them,  which  already  contained  its  quota 
of  knights,  and  at  once  rowed  out  of  the  port.  Just  as  they 
did  so  the  Turkish  galley  fired  a  gun. 

"  I  fear  we  shall  be  too  late,"  Sir  John  said  ;   "the  Turk  is 


332  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

gaining  fast  on  the  other  craft,  whatever  she  may  be.  There 
goes  another  gun.  Row  your  hardest  !  "  he  shouted  down  to 
the  slaves. 

The  Turkish  ship  did  not  fire  again  ;  the  wind  was  light, 
and  they  were  going  two  feet  through  the  water  to  every  one 
sailed  by  the  other  craft.  The  galley  from  Rhodes  was  still 
half  a  mile  away  when  the  Turk  was  close  to  the  boat  that  was 
trying  to  escape.  Sir  John  and  the  knights  chafed  as  they 
saw  they  would  be  too  late. 

"  I  can't  make  out  why  the  boat  did  not  use  her  oars,"  the 
former  said.  "  Of  course,  she  could  not  have  kept  away  from 
the  galley,  but  if  she  had  rowed  it  would  have  made  some  dif- 
ference, and  we  might  have  been  nearly  up." 

"  I  can  only  see  one  man  on  board  of  her,  Sir  John,"  one 
of  the  younger  knights  said ;  and  two  or  three  others  mur- 
mured that  they  were  of  the  same  opinion. 

"The  others  must  be  lying  down;  she  cannot  have  less 
than  from  fifteen  to  twenty  men.  The  Turk  is  close  along- 
side. They  still  hold  on.  There  !  She  has  gone  about  and 
escaped  the  attempt  to  run  her  down.  Now  she  is  heading 
for  us  again  !  Brave  fellows  !  brave  fellows  !  "  Sir  John  ex- 
claimed, while  a  cheer  broke  from  those  around  him  ;  "but 
they  have  done  for  themselves.  They  must  have  seen  us  com- 
ing out,  and  if  they  had  surrendered  might  have  hoped  to  have 
been  re-taken.  Their  chance  of  getting  quarter  was  truly  not 
great,  for  expecting — as  the  Turks  do — to  carry  off  both  us 
and  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  Island,  a  dozen  fishermen  would 
have  seemed  to  them  scarcely  worth  keeping.  However,  by 
holding  on  they  have  thrown  away  any  chance  they  may  have 
had.  The  Turks  are  alongside  ;  they  are  leaping  down  into 
the  little  craft.  Ah  !  Two  more  galleys  have  just  left  their 
fleet,  and  are  heading  here." 

"  See,  Sir  John,"  one  of  the  knights  exclaimed,  "  there  is 
a  single  man  standing  in  the  bow  of  that  craft :  he  is  facing 
the  Moors  alone.  See  how  they  crowd  there ;  you  can  see  the 


BELEAGUERED  333 

weapons  flashing  in  the  sun.    They  have  to  press  past  the  mast 
to  get  at  him,  and  as  yet  he  seems  to  hold  them  all  at  bay." 

"  He  has  chosen  his  post  well,  D'Urville.  The  number  of 
his  assailants  prevents  the  archers  on  the  Turkish  craft  using 
their  bows.  Fire  those  bow  guns  !  "  he  shouted  to  the  knights 
forward  :  ' '  Take  steady  aim  at  the  galley.  It  will  distract 
their  attention." 

"  Nobly  done  indeed  !  "  one  of  the  other  knights  shouted. 
"  I  have  seen  him  strike  down  four  of  the  Turks." 

"Row,  men,  row!  'Tis  useless!  "  Sir  John  muttered,  as 
he  clenched  the  hilt  of  his  sword.  "  Useless  !  A  Roland  could 
not  long  maintain  so  unequal  a  fight." 

A  groan  broke  from  those  around  him  as  suddenly  the  dark 
mass  of  the  assailants  made  a  forward  move,  and  the  single  figure 
was  lost  to  sight.  It  was  but  for  an  instant ;  a  moment  later  the 
crowd  separated,  and  a  man  was  seen  to  spring  overboard. 

"  They  will  riddle  him  with  their  spears  when  he  comes  up ; 
we  shall  have  nothing  to  do  but  to  avenge  him.  To  your 
stations,  comrades  !  It  is  our  turn  now,  and  we  have  no  time 
to  lose,  for  the  other  two  Turks  will  be  up  in  twenty  minutes, 
and  I  had  orders  not  to  fight  if  it  could  be  avoided :  but  we 
must  take  this  fellow." 

Five  minutes  later  the  galley  ran  alongside  the  Turk,  to 
which  those  who  had  captured  the  boat  had  already  hastily  re- 
turned. The  ships  discharged  their  guns  into  each  other,  and 
then,  as  the  galley  ran  alongside,  the  knights  tried  to  leap  on 
board  of  her.  They  were  opposed  by  a  dense  mass  of  Turks, 
for  in  addition  to  her  usual  crew  the  Moslem  was  crowded 
with  troops.  For  three  or  four  minutes  the  knights  tried,  but 
in  vain,  to  get  a  footing  on  board  ;  then  Sir  John  shouted  to 
them  to  forbear,  and  gave  orders  to  the  rowers  at  once  to  push 
off.  A  cloud  of  arrows  swept  across  the  poop  as  they  did  so  ; 
but  for  the  most  part  these  fell  harmless  from  the  armour  of  the 
knights.  For  a  time  the  cannon  on  both  sides  continued  to  fire, 
but  as  the  Christians  increased  their  distance  it  gradually  ceased. 


334  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE    CROSS 

They  had  gone  but  a  hundred  yards  from  the  Turk  when  a 
head  appeared  over  the  stern  railing  of  the  poop,  and  a  figure 
swung  itself  on  to  the  deck.  The  man  was  attired  in  Turkish 
garments,  but  his  head  was  bare,  and  the  exclamation,  "A 
Christian  !  "  broke  from  the  knights. 

The  man  strode  up  to  Sir  John  Boswell. 

"You  used  to  say  you  would  make  matters  even  with  me 
some  day,  Sir  John,  and  you  have  more  than  kept  your  word." 

Sir  John  fell  back  a  pace  in  astonishment,  and  then  with  a 
shout,  "  By  St.  George,  it  is  Tresham  !  "  threw  his  arms  round 
Gervaise's  neck,  while  the  knights  thronged  round  with  ex- 
clamations of  satisfaction. 

' '  And  it  was  you  whom  we  saw  keep  the  Turks  at  bay  for 
three  good  minutes  single-handed,"  Sir  John  said,  holding 
Gervaise  at  arm's  length  to  gaze  into  his  face.  "  Truly  it 
seemed  well-nigh  impossible  that  any  one  who  was  like  to  be 
on  that  craft  could  have  performed  so  doughty  a  deed.  And 
how  did  you  escape?  " 

"It  was  simple  enough,"  Gervaise  replied.  "As  soon  as 
I  dived  I  turned  and  swam  along  under  the  boat  and  came  up 
by  the  stern,  and  then  held  on  by  the  rudder,  sheltered  from 
their  sight.  I  saw  that  the  galley  would  be  up  in  five  minutes, 
and  had  no  fear  of  their  wasting  time  to  look  for  me.  Di- 
rectly you  came  alongside  her  I  dived  again,  and  rose  under 
your  stern.  I  did  not  think  that  you  would  be  able  to  take 
her,  for  all  their  craft  are  crowded  with  troops  ;  so  I  contented 
myself  with  holding  on  until  you  were  out  of  reach  of  their 
arrows,  and  then  I  climbed  up." 

"  I  am  delighted  to  see  you  again,  Gervaise.  I  was  feeling 
very  sore  at  the  moment,  and  I  know  the  others  felt  the  same, 
at  being  obliged  to  sheer  off  without  making  a  capture  ;  but 
the  grand  master's  orders  were  strict.  We  noted  your  craft 
pursued  by  the  Turks,  and  I  asked  leave  to  take  out  a  galley 
to  cut  her  off.  He  said,  '  Take  one,  Sir  John,  but  do  not 
adventure  an  attack  against  the  Turk  unless  she  is  likely  to  fall 


BELEAGUERED  335 

an  easy  prize  to  you.  Her  capture  would  be  of  little  benefit 
to  us,  and  would  be  dearly  purchased  at  the'  cost  of  a  knight's 
life. '  Therefore,  as  soon  as  we  engaged  her,  and  I  found  that 
she  was  full  of  troops  and  could  not  be  captured  without  heavy 
loss,  and  that  two  of  her  consorts  might  arrive  before  we  ac- 
complished it,  it  was  plainly  my  duty  to  abandon  the  attempt, 
although,  you  may  guess,  it  went  sorely  against  the  grain  to 
give  the  order,  especially  as  I  knew  that  a  host  would  be  look- 
ing on  from  St.  Stephen's  Hill.  However,  your  rescue  more 
than  makes  up  for  our  failure ;  and  thankful  indeed  am  I  that 
I  made  the  suggestion  that  we  should  put  out  to  save  that  little 
craft,  though  I  thought  it  contained  but  a  few  fishermen  or 
some  coasting  sailors,  who  had,  in  ignorance  that  the  Turks 
were  at  hand,  tried  to  enter  Rhodes.  One  of  those  looking 
on  with  me  did,  indeed,  suggest  that  she  might  have  on  board 
a  knight  or  two  coming  to  join  us,  but  I  did  not  give  the 
matter  a  second  thought. ' ' 

' '  And  how  go  things,  Sir  John  ?  And  how  are  old 
friends?" 

"  Ralph  Harcourt  and,  I  think,  all  your  comrades  in  the 
Santa  Barbara,  except  the  three  who  fell  by  your  side  when 
you  were  captured,  are  well,  and  at  present  on  the  Island,  as, 
for  the  last  two  years,  none  have  been  allowed  to  depart.  As 
to  other  matters,  they  go  not  so  well  as  one  could  wish.  The 
commanderies  have  not  responded  to  our  call  for  aid  as  they 
should  have  done.  For  this,  however,  they  are  not  altogether 
to  blame,  for  we  have  been  so  often  threatened  with  attack, 
and  have  so  frequently  applied  for  aid  in  money  or  men,  that 
they  must  have  begun  to  doubt  whether  the  danger  was  really 
imminent.  In  other  respects  we  are  well  prepared.  We  have 
obtained  large  stores  of  provisions  from  Egypt,  and  shall  have 
no  ground  for  uneasiness  on  that  score.  The  defences  have 
been  greatly  strengthened,  and  no  one  fears  that  we  shall  not 
be  able  to  beat  off  an  attack.  We  have  destroyed  the  princi- 
pal buildings  outside  the  walls,  though  it  would  have  been  bet- 


336  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

ter  could  we  have  gone  much  further  in  this  direction.  And 
now  let  us  have  your  adventures  and  escape." 

"  'Tis  a  long  story,  Sir  John,  and  I  must  pray  you  to  let  me 
defer  it  for  a  time.  In  the  first  place,  I  have  two  or  three 
wounds  that  I  shall  be  glad  to  have  bandaged. ' ' 

"  Why  did  you  not  say  so  at  once  ?  "  Sir  John  exclaimed. 
"  In  those  dark  clothes,  soaked  with  water  as  they  are,  I  did 
not  see  the  blood-stains ;  but  I  ought  to  have  looked  for  them, 
for  surely  no  one  could  have  gone  through  that  fight — alto- 
gether unprotected  with  armour  too — without  being  wounded. 
Come  below,  and  we  will  attend  to  them." 

"  Also  order  me  some  wine  and  food,  Sir  John  ;  I  have 
touched  nothing  save  water  for  twenty-four  hours,  and  before 
that  fasted  somewhat  strictly. ' ' 

By  the  time  Gervaise's  wounds,  which  were  not  severe,  had 
been  bandaged,  and  he  had  eaten  a  hasty  meal,  the  galley  was 
alongside  the  mole,  between  the  two  harbours.  He  was  pro- 
vided with  some  clothes,  and  went  with  Sir  John  straight  to 
the  English  auberge,  where  the  knight  insisted  that  he  should 
at  once  lie  down. 

"  I  will  report  your  return  to  D'Aubusson,  and  will  tell  him 
it  is  by  my  orders  that  you  are  resting.  Your  wounds  are 
not  very  deep,  but  you  must  have  lost  a  good  deal  of  blood, 
and  were  you  to  exert  yourself  now,  and  be  pestered  with 
questions,  it  would  probably  bring  on  an  attack  of  fever. 
There  is  nothing  to  do  at  present,  for  it  must  be  some  days 
before  they  can  land  and  bring  up  their  guns." 

Gervaise  obeyed  the  orders  not  unwillingly,  for  he  felt  that 
he  was  really  weak,  and  was  greatly  worn  out  by  want  of  sleep. 
Sir  John  Kendall,  at  Boswell's  request,  issued  orders  that  he 
was  on  no  account  whatever  to  be  disturbed,  and  that  no  one 
was  to  enter  his  room  unless  he  sounded  the  bell  placed  by  the 
bedside.  Gervaise  indeed,  falling  off  to  sleep  a  few  minutes 
after  he  had  lain  down,  did  not  awake  until  the  following 
morning.  Having  no  idea  that  he  had  slept  more  than  two  or 


BELEAGUERED  337 

three  hours,  he  sounded  the  bell  in  order  to  inquire  whether 
Ralph  had  returned  to  the  auberge.  He  was  surprised  to  find 
his  friend  had  just  risen,  and  that  he  himself  had  been  asleep 
some  eighteen  hours  ! 

A  few  minutes  later  Ralph  hurried  into  the  room. 

"  Thank  God  that  you  are  back  again,  Gervaise!  "  he  said, 
as  he  grasped  the  hand  of  his  friend.  "  I  did  not  return  un- 
til late  in  the  evening,  having  been  at  work  with  a  large  body 
of  slaves  at  the  fortifications ;  and  you  may  guess  what  joy  I 
felt  at  the  news.  You  are  changed  a  good  deal." 

"  I  don't  suppose  you  will  think  so  at  the  end  of  a  day  or 
two,  Ralph.  I  lost  a  good  deal  of  blood  yesterday,  and  have 
been  on  short  rations  ;  but  I  shall  very  soon  pick  up  again." 

"  They  will  bring  you  some  broth  and  wine  directly,  Ger- 
vaise. Early  as  it  is,  the  grand  master  has  already  sent  down 
to  inquire  as  to  your  health." 

"  I  will  reply  in  person  as  soon  as  I  have  had  a  meal  and 
dressed." 

"And  I  suppose  we  must  all  wait  to  hear  what  you  have 
been  doing  until  you  return,  Gervaise?" 

"  I  suppose  so,  Ralph.  Of  course  it  is  a  long  story ;  but  I 
must  tell  you  at  once  that  there  is  nothing  very  exciting  in  it, 
and  that  it  differed  little  from  that  of  others  who  have  been 
prisoners  among  the  Moors,  save  that  I  was  strangely  fortu- 
nate, and  suffered  no  hardships  whatever.  And  now  I  want  to 
ask  you  about  clothes.  Have  my  things  been  sold,  or  are  they 
still  in  the  store?  " 

"  No  ;  the  question  was  raised  but  a  short  time  since.  It 
was  mooted,  by  the  way,  by  that  old  enemy  of  yours,  Robert 
Rivers,  who  returned  here  some  three  months  ago  with  a  batch 
of  knights  from  the  English  commanderies.  Sir  John  Bosvvell 
answered  him  roundly,  I  can  tell  you,  and  said  that  they 
should  be  kept,  were  it  for  another  fifty  years,  for  that  he 
would  wager  his  life  that  you  would  sooner  or  later  make  your 
escape." 


338  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

"  I  am  sorry  that  fellow  has  returned,  Ralph.  Has  he  got 
a  commandery  yet  ?  ' ' 

"  No  ;  I  believe  that  Sir  John  Kendall  sent  home  so  bad  a 
report  of  him,  that  even  the  great  influence  of  his  family  has 
not  sufficed  to  obtain  his  appointment,  and  that  he  has  been 
merely  the  assistant  at  one  of  the  smaller  manors.  Sir  John 
Boswell  told  me  in  confidence  that  he  understood  that  Rivers 
did  not  at  first  volunteer  to  come  out  in  response  to  the  appeal 
of  the  grand  master,  but  that  the  grand  prior  informed  him 
that  unless  he  took  this  opportunity  of  retrieving  his  character, 
he  might  give  up  all  hope  of  ever  obtaining  advancement. 
Ah,  here  is  your  breakfast." 

An  hour  later  Gervaise  presented  himself  at  the  palace, 
clothed  in  the  suit  of  armour  that  had  been  given  to  him  by 
Genoa.  Although  he  was  engaged  with  several  members  of 
the  council  at  the  time,  the  grand  master  ordered  him  to  be 
at  once  admitted  as  soon  as  he  heard  that  he  was  in  attendance. 

"  Welcome  back,  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham,"  he  said  warmly, 
as  he  entered.  ' '  We  all  rejoice  greatly  at  your  return,  and  I 
consider  it  a  happy  omen  for  the  success  of  our  defence  that 
so  brave  and  distinguished  a  knight  should  at  the  last  moment 
have  arrived  to  take  a  share  in  it." 

The  others  present  all  shook  Gervaise  cordially  by  the  hand, 
and  congratulated  him  on  his  return. 

"  You  must  dine  with  me  this  evening,"  D'Aubusson  went 
on,  "  and  teH  us  the  story  of  your  captivity  and  escape.  At 
present,  as  you  may  suppose,  we  have  too  many  matters  on  hand 
to  spare  time  for  aught  that  is  not  pressing  and  important. 
You  will  need  a  few  days'  rest  before  you  are  fit  for  active  ser- 
vice, and  by  that  time  we  will  settle  as  to  what  post  will  best 
suit  you." 

Twice  that  day  had  Gervaise  to  recount  his  adventures,  the 
first  time  to  Sir  John  Kendall  and  the  knights  of  his  aubcrge, 
the  second  to  the  grand  master.  Most  of  the  leading  members 
of  the  Order  were  assembled  at  the  palace,  and,  among  others, 


BELEAGUERED  339 

he  was  introduced  to  the  Viscount  de  Monteuil,  the  elder 
brother  of  D'Aubusson,  one  of  the  most  famous  leaders  of  the 
day.  He  had  brought  with  him  a  considerable  body  of  re- 
tainers, and,  although  not  a  member  of  the  Order,  had  offered 
his  services  in  defence  of  the  town.  The  council  had  grate- 
fully accepted  the  offer,  and  had  unanimously  named  him 
Commander  of  the  Forces.  Many  other  knights  and  soldiers 
had  come  from  different  parts  of  Europe,  animated  alike  by 
the  desire  to  aid  in  the  defence  of  Christendom  against  the  ad- 
vance of  the  Moslems,  and  to  gain  credit  and  honour  by  tak- 
ing part  in  a  siege  that  was  sure  to  be  a  desperate  one. 

"  My  brother  has  already  spoken  of  you  to  me,  Sir  Ger- 
vaise,"  the  viscount  said,  when  the  young  knight  was  pre- 
sented to  him;  "although  indeed  there  was  no  occasion  for 
him  to  do  so,  since  the  name  of  the  knight  who  two  years  ago 
saved  the  commerce  of  Italy  from  ruin,  and  with  a  single  gal- 
ley destroyed  or  captured  a  great  fleet  of  over  twenty  Barbary 
pirates,  and  thus  for  a  time  put  a  stop  to  the  depredations  of 
the  infidels,  is  known  throughout  Europe.  By  the  way,  I  am 
the  bearer  of  a  message  to  you.  I  took  ship  at  Genoa  on  my 
way  hither,  and  stayed  two  or  three  days  there  while  she  was 
being  got  ready  for  sea.  Knowing  that  I  was  bound  hither, 
a  certain  very  beautiful  young  lady  of  noble  family,  to  whom 
I  had  the  honour  of  being  introduced,  prayed  me  that  if  you 
should  by  any  chance  have  escaped  from  captivity — and  she 
said  that  she  was  convinced  that  you  would,  when  you  heard 
that  Rhodes  was  threatened,  assuredly  endeavour  to  escaped 
and  to  come  hither  to  take  a  share  in  the  defence — I  was  to 
tell  you  that  she  trusted  you  still  bore  her  gage,  and  that  she, 
on  her  part,  had  held  fast  to  the  promise  she  made  you." 

' '  I  still  have  her  gage,  Viscount ;  for  though  I  was  for  a 
long  time  deprived  of  it,  I  succeeded  in  regaining  it  when  I 
made  my  escape,"  Gervaise  said  quietly;  and  De  Monteuil  at 
once  turned  the  conversation  to  another  topic. 

Gervaise  found  that  no  attempt  was  to  be  made  to  take  the 


340  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

offensive  against  the  Turks,  and  that  they  were  to  be  permitted 
to  advance  against  the  city  without  interference.  Many  of  the 
more  fiery  spirits  among  the  knights  chafed  at  this  prohibi- 
tion. The  records  of  the  past  showed  that  armies  as  large  as 
that  of  Mahomet  had  suffered  defeat  at  the  hands  of  bodies  of 
knights  no  stronger  than  that  gathered  for  the  defence  of 
Rhodes.  D'Aubussori,  however,  knew  that  between  the  un- 
disciplined hordes  that  gathered  in  countless  numbers  to  op- 
pose the  crusaders,  and  the  troops  of  Mahomet,  well-trained 
in  warfare,  who  had  borne  his  standard  victoriously  in  numer- 
ous battles,  there  was  but  little  comparison.  They  were  com- 
manded, too,  by  Paleologus,  a  general  of  great  capacity. 
Under  such  circumstances,  although  victory  might  be  possible, 
the  chances  of  defeat  would  be  far  greater,  and  while  victory 
could  be  only  won  at  a  great  sacrifice  of  life,  defeat  would 
mean  annihilation  to  the  garrison,  and  the  loss  of  the  city 
upon  whose  fortifications  such  an  enormous  amount  of  money 
and  labour  had  been  expanded. 

On  the  other  hand,  he  felt  perfectly  confident  that  the  city 
could  be  successfully  defended,  and  that  at  a  cost  of  life  far 
less  than  would  be  attained  by  a  victory  in  the  open  field, 
while  the  blow  that  would  be  inflicted  upon  the  prestige  and 
power  of  the  enemy,  by  being  ignominiously  compelled  to  re- 
tire to  their  ships,  after  the  failure  of  all  their  attacks,  would 
be  as  great  as^  if  their  army  had  been  defeated  in  the  field. 
Therefore  the  grand  master,  with  the  full  assent  of  his  leaders, 
turned  a  deaf  ear  to  the  entreaties  of  the  younger  knights, 
that  they  might  be  allowed  to  make  a  sortie.  He  calmly 
waited  behind  the  formidable  defences  he  had  for  the  past 
ten  years  been  occupied  in  perfecting,  in  anticipation  of  the 
assault  of  the  Moslem  host.  Accordingly,  after  disembarking 
at  their  leisure,  the  Turkish  army  moved  forward,  and  took 
their  post  upon  St.  Stephen's  Hill.  From  this  eminence  they 
commanded  a  full  view  of  the  town,  the  hills  sloping  gently 
down  to  the  foot  of  the  walls.  In  later  times  the  first  care  of 


BELEAGUERED  841 

a  general  commanding  the  defence  would  have  been  to  con- 
struct formidable  works  upon  this  commanding  position.  But 
the  cannon  of  that  period  were  so  cumbrous  and  slowly  worked, 
and  so  inaccurate  in  their  aim,  that  the  advantage  of  occupy- 
ing a  position  that  would  prevent  an  enemy  from  firing  down 
into  a  town  was  considered  to  be  more  than  counterbalanced 
by  the  weakening  of  the  garrison  by  the  abstraction  of  the 
force  required  to  man  the  detached  work,  and  by  the  risk  of 
their  being  surrounded  and  cut  off  without  the  garrison  of  the 
town  being  able  to  aid  them. 

That  the  defence  of  St.  Stephen's  Hill  was  considered  un- 
necessary for  the  safety  of  Rhodes  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  no 
attempt  had  been  made  to  fortify  it  when,  forty  years  later,  the 
Moslems  again  besieged  the* city. 

There  was  no  shadow  of  apprehension  felt  by  the  garrison  of 
Rhodes  as  the  great  array  of  their  foes  was  seen  moving  on  to 
the  hill,  and  preparing  to  pitch  its  camp.  On  the  summit  was 
the  great  tent  of  the  pasha  ;  round  this  were  the  marquees  of 
the  other  commanders,  while  the  encampments  of  the  troops 
stretched  far  away  along  the  upper  slopes  of  the  hill. 

Previous  to  the  despatch  of  the  expedition,  the  sultan  had 
made  preparations  for  aiding  his  arms  by  treachery.  The  agent 
he  had  sent  to  propose  a  temporary  truce  had,  during  his  stay 
on  the  Island,  made  himself  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the 
outline  of  the  works.  A  very  accurate  plan  of  them  had  also 
been  obtained  from  an  inhabitant  of  Rhodes,  who  had  aban- 
doned Christianity  and  taken  service  with  the  Turks. 

In  addition  to  this  he  had  arranged  with  a  renegade  German, 
known  as  Maitre  Georges,  a  man  of  very  great  ability  as  an  ar- 
tilleryman and  engineer,  to  desert  to  the  city,  and  there  do  all 
in  his  power  to  assist  the  besiegers,  both  by  affording  them  in- 
formation and  by  giving  bad  advice  to  the  besieged.  On  the 
day  after  Paleologus,  who  was  himself  a  renegade  Greek,  had 
established  his  camp,  he  sent  in  a  herald  to  summon  the  city 
to  surrender,  at  the  same  time  making  lavish  promises  that  the 


342  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

lives  and  property  of  the  native  population  should  be  respected, 
and  that  they  should  be  allowed  to  continue  to  reside  there,  to 
enjoy  the  full  exercise  of  their  religion  and  of  all  other  rights 
they  possessed.  The  pasha  had  no  real  hope  that  the  knights 
would  obey  the  summons,  but  he  thought  that  he  might  excite 
a  spirit  of  disaffection  among  the  townspeople  that  would,  when 
the  crisis  came,  greatly  hamper  the  efforts  of  the  defenders. 

The  Rhodians,  however,  were  well  satisfied  with  the  rule  of 
the  Order.  The  knights,  although  belonging  to  the  Catholic 
Church,  had  allowed  the  natives  of  the  Island,  who  were  of  the 
Greek  faith,  perfect  freedom  in  the  exercise  of  their  religion, 
and  their  rule,  generally,  had  been  fair  and  just.  The  wealth 
and  prosperity  of  the  Island  had  increased  enormously  since 
their  establishment  there,  and  the  population  had  no  inclina- 
tion whatever  to  change  their  rule  for  that  of  the  Turks.  The 
summons  to  surrender  being  refused,  the  enemy  made  a  recon- 
naissance towards  the  walls.  D'Aubusson  had  no  longer  any 
reason  for  checking  the  ardour  of  the  knights,  and  a  strong 
body  of  horsemen,  under  the  command  of  De  Monteuil,  sal- 
lied out  and  drove  the  Turks  back  to  their  camp. 

Maitre  Georges,  who  was  acting  as  the  military  adviser  of 
the  pasha,  saw  at  once  that  the  weakest  point  of  the  defence 
was  Fort  St.  Nicholas,  at  the  extremity  of  the  mole  along  the 
neck  of  land  dividing  the  outer  from  the  inner  port.  At  a 
short  distance  away,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  port,  stood  the 
church  of  St.  Anthony,  and  in  the  gardens  of  the  church  a  bat- 
tery was  at  once  erected.  The  garden  was  but  three  hundred 
yards  from  St.  Nicholas,  and  the  danger  that  would  arise  from 
the  construction  of  the  battery  was  at  once  perceived,  and  an 
incessant  fire  opened  upon  it  from  the  guns  on  the  wall  round 
the  grand  master's  palace.  Numbers  of  the  workmen  were 
killed,  but  the  erection  of  the  battery  was  pushed  on  night  and 
day,  and  ere  long  three  of  the  immense  cannon  that  had  been 
brought  from  Constantinople, — where  sixteen  of  them  had  been 
cast  under  the  direction  of  Maitre  Georges — were  placed  in 


BELEAGUERED  343 

position.     These  cannon  were  eighteen  feet  in  length,  and  car- 
ried stone  balls  of  some  twenty -six  inches  in  diameter. 

Before  these  were  ready  to  open  fire,  Gervaise  had  entirely 
regained  his  health  and  strength.  The  grand  master,  being 
unwilling  to  appoint  him  to  a  separate  command  over  the  heads 
of  knights  many  years  his  senior,  had  attached  him  to  his  person 
in  the  capacity  of  what  would  now  be  called  an  aide-de-camp. 

"  I  know,  Gervaise,  that  I  can  rely  upon  your  coolness  and 
discretion.  I  cannot  be  everywhere  myself,  and  I  want  you  to 
act  as  my  eyes  in  places  where  I  cannot  be.  I  know  that  the 
knights,  so  far  as  bravery  and  devotion  are  concerned,  will  each 
and  every  one  do  his  best,  and  will  die  at  their  posts  before 
yielding  a  foot ;  but  while  fighting  like  paladins  they  will  think 
of  naught  else,  and,  however  hardly  pressed,  will  omit  to  send 
to  me  to  ask  for  reinforcements.  Nay,  even  did  they  think  of 
it,  they  probably  would  not  send,  deeming  that  to  do  so  would 
be  derogatory,  and  might  be  taken  as  an  act  of  cowardice. 
Now,  it  is  this  service  that  I  shall  specially  look  for  from  you. 
When  a  post  is  attacked,  I  shall,  when  my  presence  is  required 
elsewhere,  send  you  to  represent  me.  I  do  not,  of  course,  wish 
you  to  interfere  in  any  way  in  the  conduct  of  the  defence,  in 
which  you  will  take  such  share  as  you  can ;  but  you  are  spe- 
cially to  observe  how  matters  go,  and  if  you  see  that  the  knights 
are  pressed  and  in  sore  need  of  assistance  to  enable  them  to  hold 
the  post,  you  will  at  once  bring  the  news  to  me,  and  I  will 
hurry  there  with  reinforcements." 

No  post  could  have  been  more  in  accordance  with  the  desire 
of  Gervaise,  for  the  portion  of  the  wall  defended  by  the  Eng- 
lish langue  was  far  removed  from  the  point  selected  by  the 
Turks  for  their  first  attack,  the  sea  front  being  defended  half 
by  the  langue  of  Italy,  and  half  by  that  of  Castile.  Fort  St. 
Nicholas  was  under  the  command  of  the  Cavalier  Caretto,  and 
as  soon  as  the  Turkish  battery  was  completed,  Gervaise  went 
down  there  with  an  order  from  the  grand  master  that  he  was 
for  the  present  to  consider  himself  as  forming  part  of  the  gar- 


344  A  KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

rison.  This  was  pleasant  for  both  Caretto  and  himself,  for  the 
Italian  knight  had  conceived  a  strong  friendship  for  the  young 
Englishman,  and  had  rejoiced  greatly  at  his  return  from  cap- 
tivity, but  had  been  so  much  occupied  with  his  duty  of  placing 
the  castle  in  all  respects  in  a  state  of  defence,  that  he  had  had 
no  opportunity  for  a  private  conversation  with  him  since  his 
return  to  Rhodes. 

Gervaise,  on  his  part,  was  no  less  pleased.  Caretto  had 
shown  so  much  tact  after  his  release  from  the  Moors,  and  had 
so  willingly  aided  him  in  any  capacity  allotted  to  him,  without 
in  the  slightest  degree  interposing  his  council  unasked,  that 
Gervaise  had  come  to  like  him  greatly,  even  before  their  ar- 
rival at  Genoa.  Circumstances  there  had  brought  them  close- 
ly together,  and  their  friendship  had  been  cemented  during 
their  voyage  to  Rhodes.  Caretto  had  gone  back  to  Italy, 
where  he  had  a  commandery,  a  few  days  after  Gervaise  had 
sailed  on  his  last  voyage,  and  had  only  returned  to  Rhodes 
three  months  before  Gervaise  escaped  from  captivity. 

"This  is  turning  the  tables,"  Caretto  said,  with  a  laugh, 
when  Gervaise  presented  the  grand  master's  order.  "  I  was 
under  your  command  last  time,  -and  now  it  seems  that  you  are 
to  be  under  mine.  I  suppose  you  applied  to  come  here,  in 
order  to  have  a  fresh  opportunity  of  distinguishing  yourself. 
I  heard  that  you  had  been  placed  on  D'Aubusson's  own  staff." 

"  Yes,  and  am  on  it  still ;  and  it  is  by  his  orders  and  not 
by  my  own  solicitation  that  I  am  here.  I  will  tell  you  what 
my  duties  are.  The  grand  master  knows  the  commanders  of 
posts  have  their  hands  so  full  that  they  will  have  no  time  for 
sending  complete  reports  to  him,  and  he  considers,  moreover, 
that  they  might,  in  some  cases,  however  pressed,  hesitate  to  ask 
for  aid  until  too  late  for  reinforcements  to  be  brought  up.  My 
duty  will  be  to  let  the  grand  master  know  how  matters  are  go- 
ing, and  to  send  to  him  at  once  if  it  seems  to  me  that  help  is 
needed.  I  should,  of  course,  always  send  for  reinforcements, 
at  the  request  of  a  commander  ;  but  it  is  only  in  the  event  of 


BELEAGUERED  345 

his  being  too  busy  in  the  heat  of  the  fray  to  think  of  aught  but 
resisting  an  attack,  that  I  should  exercise  my  own  judgment  in 
the  matter. ' ' 

Caretto  nodded. 

"  It  is  a  good  thought  of  D'Aubusson's.  When  one  is  in 
the  thick  of  a  fight  in  a  breach,  with  the  Moslems  swarming 
round,  it  does  not  occur  to  one  to  draw  out  of  the  fray  to  send 
off  messages.  For  myself,  I  shall  be  glad  indeed  to  have  that 
matter  off  my  mind,  though  it  is  not  every  one  I  should  care 
to  trust  with  such  a  responsibility.  Some  might  send  off  for  aid 
when  it  was  not  needed,  others  might  delay  so  long  that  help 
might  come  too  late ;  but  with  one  so  cool-headed  as  yourself 
I  should  not  fear  any  contingency.  And  now,  as  I  am  not 
busy  at  present,  let  us  have  a  comfortable  talk  as  to  what  has 
happened  since  we  met  last.  I  was  at  the  banquet  at  the  grand 
master's  on  the  night  when  you  related  your  adventures.  You 
had  certainly  much  to  tell,  but  it  seems  to  me  for  some  reason 
or  other  you  cut  short  certain  details,  and  I  could  not  see  why, 
as  there  seemed  no  prospect  of  escape  open  to  you,  you  did  not 
accept  the  offer  of  Suleiman  Ali  to  ransom  you. ' ' 

"  I  saw  no  chance  of  escape  at  the  moment,  but  I  did  not 
doubt  that  I  could  get  away  from  the  town  whenever  I  chose, 
although  it  was  not  clear  how  I  should  proceed  afterwards.  It 
was  for  this  opportunity  I  was  waiting,  and  I  felt  sure,  that, 
with  my  knowledge  of  the  language,  it  would  come  sooner  or 
later.  In  the  next  place,  my  captors  had  fixed  an  exorbitant 
sum  for  my  ransom,  and  I  did  not  wish  to  impose  upon  the 
generosity  of  Suleiman.  There  was  another  reason — a  private 
one." 

"  You  don't  mean  to  say  that  you  had  fallen  in  love  with  a 
Moorish  damsel,  Sir  Gervaise?"  Caretto  laughed. 

"For  shame,  Cavalier!  As  if  a  Christian  knight  would 
care  for  a  Moslem  maiden,  even  were  she  as  fair  as  the  houris 
of  their  creed  !  ' ' 

"  Christian  knights   have  done  so  before  now,"   Caretto 


A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

laughed,  greatly  amused  at  the  young  knight's  indignation, 
"  and  doubtless  will  do  so  again.  Well,  I  suppose  I  must  not 
ask  what  the  private  matter  was,  though  it  must  have  been 
something  grave  indeed  to  lead  you,  a  slave,  to  reject  the  offer 
of  freedom.  I  know  that  when  I  was  rowing  in  their  galleys, 
no  matter  of  private  business  that  I  can  conceive  would  have 
stood  in  my  way  for  a  single  moment,  had  a  chance  of  freedom 
presented  itself." 

"  It  was  a  matter  of  honour,"  Gervaise  said  gravely,  "  and 
one  of  which  I  should  speak  to  no  one  else  ;  but  as  you  were 
present  at  the  time,  there  can,  I  think,  be  no  harm  in  doing  so. 
At  the  time  that  I  was  captured,  I  was  stripped  of  everything 
that  I  had  upon  me,  and,  of  course,  with  the  rest,  of  the  gage 
which  the  Lady  Claudia  had  given  me,  and  which  hung 
round  my  neck  where  she  had  placed  it.  It  was  taken  pos- 
session of  by  the  captain  of  the  pirates,  who,  seeing  that  it 
bore  no  Christian  emblem,  looked  upon  it  as  a  sort  of  amulet. 
I  understood  what  he  was  saying,  but,  as  I  was  desirous  that 
my  knowledge  of  Turkish  should  not  be  suspected,  I  said 
nothing.  I  was  very  glad  that  he  so  regarded  it,  for  had  he 
taken  it  to  be  an  ordinary  trinket,  he  might  have  parted  with 
it,  and  I  should  never  have  been  able  to  obtain  a  clue  as  to  the 
person  to  whom  he  sold  it.  As  it  was,  he  put  it  round  his 
neck,  with  the  remark  that  it  might  bring  him  better  luck 
than  had  befallen  me.  He  told  me  jeeringly  months  after- 
wards that  it  had  done  so,  and  that  he  would  never  part  with 
it.  Given  me  as  it  was,  I  felt  that  my  honour  was  concerned  in 
its  recovery,  and  that,  should  I  ever  meet  Lady  Claudia  again, 
I  should  feel  disgraced  indeed,  if,  when  she  asked  whether  I 
still  bore  her  gage,  I  had  to  confess  that  it  was  lost." 

"  But  lost  from  no  fault  of  your  own,"  Caretto  put  in. 

"  The  losing  was  not  indeed  from  any  fault  of  my  own,  and 
had  the  pirate  thrown  it  into  the  sea  I  should  have  held  my- 
self free  from  disgrace ;  but  as  it  was  still  in  existence,  and 
I  knew  its  possessor,  I  was  bound  in  honour  to  recover  it.  At 


THE    FORT   OF   ST.    NICHOLAS  347 

the  time  Suleiman  Ali's  messenger  arrived  the  corsair  was 
away,  and  there  was  no  saying  when  his  ship  would  return  ; 
therefore,  I  decided  at  once  not  to  accept  the  offer  of  freedom. 
Had  it  not  been  for  that,  I  own  that  I  should  have  done  so, 
for  I  knew  that  I  could  repay  Suleiman  from  the  revenues  of 
my  commandery,  which  would  have  accumulated  in  my  ab- 
sence ;  but  if  I  had  had  to  wait  ten  years  longer  to  regain  the 
gage,  I  felt  that  I  was  in  honour  bound  to  do  so.  It  was,  in 
fact,  some  six  months  before  the  corsair  put  into  that  port 
again.  The  moment  he  did  so  I  carried  out  the  plans  I  had 
long  before  determined  upon.  I  obtained  a  disguise  from 
Ben  Ibyn,  and  by  a  ruse  succeeded  in  inducing  the  pirate  to 
meet  me  outside  the  town,  believing  that  I  was  an  Arab  chief 
who  wished  to  dispose  of  some  valuable  slave-girls  he  had 
brought  in.  I  had  with  me  one  of  my  old  galley-slaves, 
who  had  been  taken  into  Ben  Ibyn's  employment ;  and  when 
the  pirate  came  up  with  two  of  his  crew,  and  furiously  attacked 
me  as  soon  as  I  threw  off  my  disguise,  it  would  have  gone  hard 
with  me  had  he  not  stood  by  me,  and  killed  one  of  them  who 
was  about  to  attack  me  in  the  rear.  I  slew  the  other  and  Has- 
san, and  the  gage  is  in  its  place  again." 


CHAPTER  XXI 

THE   FORT   OF   ST.    NICHOLAS 

"  \1  7ELL,  you  have  proved  indeed,"  Caretto  said,  when 
*  »  Gervaise  finished  his  story,  "  that  you  are  worthy  of 
the  bestowal  of  a  gage  by  a  fair  damsel.  I  do  not  think  that 
many  knights,  however  true  they  might  be  to  the  donor, 
would  have  suffered  months  of  slavery  in  order  to  regain  a  token, 
lost  by  no  fault  or  carelessness  of  their  own  ;  and  no  lady  could 
have  blamed  or  held  them  in  any  way  dishonoured  by  the  loss." 


348  A  KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

' '  I  had  a  message  by  the  Viscount  De  Monteuil  from  Lady 
Claudia  the  other  day,  saying  that  she  trusted  I  had  kept  her 
gage.  I  can  assure  you  that  the  six  months  of  slavery  were 
cheaply  purchased  by  the  pleasure  I  felt  that  I  still  possessed 
it ;  and  I  was  glad,  too,  to  learn  that  I  had  not  been  forgotten 
by  her." 

' '  Of  that  you  may  well  assure  yourself,  Tresham ;  my  com- 
mandery  is  not  far  from  Genoa,  and  I  was  frequently  with  her, 
but  never  without  her  drawing  me  aside  and  asking  me  if  I  had 
heard  any  news  of  you,  and  talking  over  with  me  the  chances 
there  might  be  of  your  escape.  I  can  tell  you  that  there  are 
not  a  few  young  nobles  of  Genoa  who  would  give  much  to  be 
allowed  as  you  are  to  carry  her  gage,  or  wear  her  colours. 
You  should  see  her  now  ;  you  would  scarce  know  her  again,  so 
altered  and  improved  is  she ;  there  is  no  fairer  face  in  all  Italy. ' ' 

"  I  hope  some  day  to  meet  her  again,"  Gervaise  replied; 
"although  I  own  to  knowing  it  were  better  that  I  should  not 
do  so.  Until  she  gave  me  her  gage  I  had  scarcely  noticed  her. 
I  have,  as  you  know,  no  experience  of  women,  and  had  so 
much  on  my  mind  at  the  time,  what  with  the  fuss  they  were 
making  about  us,  and  the  question  of  getting  the  prizes  here, 
that  in  truth  I  paid  but  slight  attention  to  the  fair  faces  of  the 
dames  oC  Genoa.  But  the  gracious  and  earnest  way  in  which, 
though  scarce  more  than  a  child,  she  gave  me  her  gage,  and 
vowed  that  norther  knight  should  possess  one  so  long  as  I  lived, 
struck  me  so  greatly  that  I  own  I  gave  the  matter  much  more 
thought  than  was  right  or  becoming  in  one  of  our  Order. 
The  incident  was  much  more  gratifying  to  me  than  all  the 
honour  paid  me  by  the  Republic,  and  during  the  long 
months  of  my  captivity  it  has  recurred  to  me  so  frequently 
that  I  have  in  vain  endeavoured  to  chase  it  from  my  thoughts, 
as  sinful  thus  to  allow  myself  constantly  to  think  of  any  woman. 
Do  not  mistake  me,  Sir  Fabricius.  I  am  speaking  to  you  as 
to  a  confessor,  and  just  as  I  have  kept  her  amulet  hidden  from 
all,  so  is  the  thought  of  her  a  secret  I  would  not  part  with  for 


THE    FORT    OF    ST.    NICHOLAS  34*) 

my  life.  I  do  not  for  a  moment  deceive  myself  with  the 
thought  that,  beyond  the  fact  that  her  gift  has  made  her  feel 
an  interest  in  me  and  my  fate,  she  has  any  sentiment  in  the 
matter :  probably,  indeed,  she  looks  back  upon  the  gift  as  a 
foolish  act  of  girlish  enthusiasm  that  led  her  into  making  a 
promise  that  she  now  cannot  but  find  unpleasantly  binding ; 
for  it  is  but  natural  that  among  the  young  nobles  of  her  own 
rank  and  country  there  must  be  some  whom  she  would  see  with 
pleasure  wearing  her  colours." 

Caretto  looked  at  him  with  some  amusement. 

"  Were  you  not  bound  by  your  vows  as  a  knight  of  the 
Order,  how  would  you  feel  in  the  matter  ?  ' ' 

"  I  should  feel  worse,"  Gervaise  said,  without  hesitation. 
"  I  have  oftentimes  thought  that  over,  and  I  see  that  it  is  good 
for  me  I  am  so  bound.  It  does  not  decrease  my  chances,  for, 
as  I  know,  there  are  no  chances ;  but  it  renders  it  more  easy 
for  me  to  know  that  it  is  so." 

"  But  why  should  you  say  that  you  have  no  chances,  Tresh- 
am?" 

"  Because  it  is  easy  to  see  that  it  is  so.  I  am,  save  for  my 
commandery  and  prospects  in  the  Order,  a  penniless  young 
knight,  without  home  or  estate,  without  even  a  place  in  my 
country,  and  that  country  not  hers.  I  know  that  it  is  not 
only  sinful,  but  mad,  for  me  to  think  so  frequently  of  her,  but 
at  least  I  am  not  mad  enough  to  think  that  I  can  either  win 
the  heart  or  aspire  to  the  hand  of  one  who  is,  you  say,  so 
beautiful,  and  who  is,  moreover,  as  I  know,  the  heiress  to  wide 
estates. ' ' 

"  '  There  was  a  squire  of  low  degree 

Loved  the  king's  daughter  of  Hungarie,'  " 

Caretto  sang,  with  a  laugh.  "  You  are  not  of  low  degree,  but 
of  noble  family,  Gervaise.  You  are  not  a  squire,  but  a  knight, 
and  already  a  very  distinguished  one;  nor  is  the  young  lady, 
though  she  be  a  rich  heiress,  a  king's  daughter." 


350  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

"  At  any  rate,  the  squire  was  not  vowed  to  celibacy.  No, 
no,  Sir  Fabricius,  it  is  a  drearn,  and  a  pleasant  one ;  but  I 
know  perfectly  well  that  it  is  but  a  dream,  and  one  that  will 
do  me  no  harm  so  long  as  I  ever  bear  in  mind  that  it  is  so. 
Many  a  knight  of  the  Order  before  me  has  borne  a  lady's  gage, 
and  carried  it  valiantly  in  many  a  fight,  and  has  been  no  less 
true  to  his  vows  for  doing  so." 

"  Upon  the  contrary,  he  has  been  all  the  better  a  knight, 
Gervaise ;  it  is  always  good  for  a  knight,  whether  he  belongs 
to  the  Order  or  not,  to  prize  one  woman  above  all  others,  and 
to  try  to  make  himself  worthy  of  his  ideal.  As  to  the  vow  of 
celibacy,  you  know  that  ere  now  knights  have  been  absolved 
from  their  vows,  and  methinks  that,  after  the  service  you  have 
rendered  to  Italy  by  ridding  the  sea  of  those  corsairs,  his 
Holiness  would  make  no  difficulty  in  granting  any  request  that 
you  might  make  him  in  that  or  any  other  direction.  I  don't 
know  whether  you  are  aware  that,  after  you  sailed  from  here, 
letters  came  from  Rome  as  well  as  from  Pisa,  Florence,  and 
Naples,  expressive  of  the  gratitude  felt  for  the  services  that 
you  had  rendered,  and  of  their  admiration  for  the  splendid  ex- 
ploit that  you  had  performed." 

"  No ;  the  grand  master  has  had  his  hands  so  full  of  other 
matters  that  doubtless  an  affair  so  old  escaped  his  memory. 
Indeed,  he  may  have  forgotten  that  I  sailed  before  the  letters 
arrived." 

"  Do  not  forget  to  jog  his  memory  on  the  subject,  for  I  can 
tell  you  that  the  letters  did  not  come  alone,  but  were  each 
accompanied  by  presents  worthy  of  the  service  you  rendered. 
But  as  to  the  vows  ?  ' ' 

"As  to  the  vows,  I  feel  as  I  said  just  now,  that  I  would  not 
free  myself  of  them  if  I  could,  for,  being  bound  by  them,  I  can 
the  more  easily  and  pleasantly  enjoy  my  dream.  Besides, 
what  should  I  do  if  I  left  the  Order  without  home,  country,  or 
means,  and  with  naught  to  do  but  to  sell  my  sword  to  some 
warlike  monarch?  Besides,  Caretto,  I  love  the  Order,  and 


THE    FORT   OF    ST.    NICHOLAS  351 

deem  it  the  highest  privilege  to  fight  against  the  Moslems,  and 
to  uphold  the  banner  of  the  Cross. ' ' 

"As  to  that,  you  could,  like  De  Monteuil  and  many  other 
knights  here,  always  come  out  to  aid  the  Order  in  time  of 
need.  As  to  the  vows,  I  am  not  foolish  enough  to  suppose  that 
you  would  ask  to  be  relieved  from  them,  until  you  had  as- 
sured yourself  that  Claudia  was  also  desirous  that  you  should 
be  free." 

"  It  is  absurd,"  Gervaise  said,  almost  impatiently.  "  Do 
not  let  us  talk  any  more  about  it,  Caretto,  or  it  will  end  by 
turning  my  head  and  making  me  presumptuous  enough  to  imag- 
ine that  the  Lady  Claudia,  who  only  saw  me  for  three  or  four 
days,  and  that  while  she  was  still  but  a  girl,  has  been  thinking 
of  me  seriously  since." 

"  I  do  not  know  Claudia's  thoughts,"  Caretto  remarked 
drily,  "but  I  do  know  that  last  year  she  refused  to  listen  to  at 
least  a  score  of  excellent  offers  for  her  hand,  including  one  from 
a  son  of  the  doge  himself,  and  that  without  any  reasonable  cause 
assigned  by  her,  to  the  great  wonderment  of  all,  seeing  that 
she  does  not  appear  to  have  any  leaning  whatever  towards  a  life 
in  a  nunnery.  At  any  rate,  if  at  some  future  time  you  should 
pluck  up  heart  of  grace  to  tell  her  you  love  her,  and  she  refuses 
you,  you  will  at  least  have  the  consolation  of  knowing  that  you 
are  not  the  only  one,  by  a  long  way,  whose  suit  has  been  reject- 
ed. And  now  as  to  our  affairs  here.  Methinks  that  to-mor- 
row that  battery  will  open  fire  upon  us.  It  seems  completed." 

"Yes,  I  think  they  are  nearly  ready,"  Gervaise  said,  turning 
his  mind  resolutely  from  the  subject  they  had  been  discussing. 
"  From  the  palace  wall  I  saw,  before  I  came  down  here,  large 
numbers  of  men  rolling  huge  stones  down  towards  the  church. 
Our  guns  were  firing  steadily  ;  but  could  they  load  them  ten 
times  as  fast  as  they  do,  they  would  hardly  be  able  to  stop  the 
work,  so  numerous  are  those  engaged  upon  it." 

"  Yes  we  shall  soon  learn  something  of  the  quality  of  their 
artillery.  The  tower  is  strong  enough  to  resist  ordinary  guns, 


352  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

but  it  will  soon  crumble  under  the  blows  of  such  enormous 
missiles.  Never  have  I  seen  or  heard  in  Europe  of  cannon  of 
such  size;  but  indeed,  in  this  matter  the  Turks  are  far  ahead 
of  us,  and  have,  ever  since  cannon  were  first  cast,  made  them 
of  much  larger  size  than  we  in  Europe  have  done.  However, 
there  is  one  comfort ;  they  may  destroy  this  fort,  but  they 
have  still  to  cross  the  water,  and  this  under  the  fire  of  the  guns 
on  the  palace  walls  ;  when  they  once  land,  their  great  battery 
must  cease  firing,  and  we  shall  be  able  to  meet  them  on  equal 
terms  in  the  breach.  Fight  as  hard  as  they  may,  I  think  we 
can  hold  our  own,  especially  as  reinforcements  can  come  down 
to  us  more  quickly  than  they  can  be  brought  across  the  water. ' ' 

The  next  morning,  at  daybreak,  the  deep  boom  of  a  gun  an- 
nounced to  the  city  that  the  great  battering  cannon  had  begun 
their  work.  In  the  fort  the  sleeping  knights  sprang  to  their 
feet  at  the  concussion  that  seemed  to  shake  it  to  its  centre. 
They  would  have  rushed  to  the  walls,  but  Caretto  at  once  is- 
sued orders  that  no  one  should  show  himself  on  the  battlements 
unless  under  special  orders. 

"  There  is  nothing  whatever  to  be  done  until  the  Turks 
have  breached  the  wall,  and  are  ready  to  advance  to  attack  us. 
Every  sword  will  be  needed  when  that  hour  comes,  and  each 
man  owes  it  to  the  Order  to  run  no  useless  risk,  until  the  hour 
when  he  is  required  to  do  his  share  of  the  fighting. ' ' 

The  time  required  to  reload  the  great  cannon  was  consider- 
able, but  at  regular  intervals  they  hurled  their  heavy  missiles 
against  the  wall,  the  distance  being  so  short  that  every  ball 
struck  it.  After  some  twenty  shots  had  been  fired,  Caretto, 
accompanied  by  Gervaise,  went  out  by  a  small  gate  on  the 
eastern  side  of  the  tower,  and  made  their  way  round  by  the 
foot  of  the  wall  to  see  what  effect  the  shots  had  produced  on 
the  solid  masonry. 

Caretto  shook  his  head. 

"  It  is  as  I  feared,"  he  said.  "  No  stones  ever  quarried  by 
man  could  long  resist  such  tremendous  blows.  In  some  places, 


THE    FORT    OF   ST.    NICHOLAS  353 

you  see,  the  stones  are  starred  and  cracked,  in  others  the  shock 
seems  to  have  pulverised  the  spot  where  it  struck ;  but,  worse 
still,  the  whole  face  of  the  wall  is  shaken.  There  are  cracks 
between  the  stones,  and  some  of  these  are  partly  bulged  out 
and  partly  driven  in.  It  may  take  some  time  before  a  breach 
is  effected,  but  sooner  or  later  the  wall  will  surely  be  demol- 
ished." 

"  I  will  go  up  and  make  my  report  to  the  grand  master." 

"  Do  so,  Gervaise.  I  almost  wonder  that  he  has  not  him- 
self come  down  to  see  how  the  wall  is  resisting. ' ' 

Gervaise,  on  reaching  the  palace,  heard  that  D' Aubusson  was 
at  present  engaged  in  examining  no  less  a  person  than  Maitre 
Georges,  the  right  hand  of  Paleologus,  who  had  soon  after  day- 
break presented  himself  before  the  wall  on  the  other  side  of  the 
town,  declaring  that  he  had  left  the  Turkish  service,  and  crav- 
ing to  be  admitted.  News  had  been  sent  at  once  to  D' Aubus- 
son, who  despatched  two  of  the  senior  knights,  with  orders  to 
admit  him  and  receive  him  with  all  honour.  This  had  been 
done,  and  the  grand  master,  with  some  of  his  council,  were 
now  closeted  with  the  new-comer.  Several  of  the  knights  were 
gathered  in  the  courtyard,  discussing  the  event.  There  was  no 
question  that  if  the  renegade  came  in  good  faith,  his  defection 
would  be  a  serious  blow  to  the  assailants,  and  that  his  well- 
known  skill  and  experience  would  greatly  benefit  the  defenders. 

"  For  my  part,"  Sir  John  Boswell,  who  formed  one  of  the 
detachment  which  the  English  langue,  as  well  as  all  the  others, 
contributed  to  form  the  garrison  of  the  palace  said,  "  I  would 
have  hung  the  fellow  up  by  the  neck  over  the  gateway,  and  he 
should  never  have  set  -  foot  within  the  walls.  Think  you  that 
a  man  who  has  denied  his  faith  and  taken  service  with  his 
enemies  is  to  be  trusted,  whatever  oaths  he  may  take?  " 

"You  must  remember,  Boswell,"  another  said,  "  that  hith- 
erto Georges  has  not  fought  against  Christians,  but  has  served 
Mahomet  in  his  wars  with  other  infidels.  I  am  not  saying  a 
word  in  defence  of  his  having  become  a  renegade  ;  yet  even  a 


354:  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

renegade  may  have  some  sort  of  heart,  and  now  that  he  has 
been  called  upon  to  fight  against  Christians  he  may  well  have 
repented  of  his  faults,  and  determined  to  sacrifice  his  position 
and  prospects  rather  than  aid  in  the  attack  on  the  city. ' ' 

' '  We  shall  see.  As  for  me,  I  regard  a  renegade  as  the  most 
contemptible  of  wretches,  and  have  no  belief  that  they  have 
either  a  heart  or  conscience. ' ' 

When  Maitre  Georges  came  out  from  the  palace,  laughing 
and  talking  with  the  two  knights  who  had  entered  with  him, 
it  was  evident  that  he  was  well  pleased  with  his  reception  by 
the  grand  master,  who  had  assigned  to  him  a  suite  of  apart- 
ments in  the  guest-house.  In  reality,  however,  D'Aubusson 
had  no  doubt  that  his  object  was  a  treacherous  one,  and  that, 
like  Demetrius,  who  had  come  under  the  pretence  of  bringing 
about  a  truce,  his  object  was  to  find  out  the  weak  points  and 
to  supply  the  Turks  with  information.  Georges  had,  in  his 
conversation  with  him,  laid  great  stress  on  the  strength  of  the 
Turkish  army,  the  excellent  quality  of  the  troops,  and  the 
enormous  battering  train  that  had  been  prepared.  But  every 
word  he  spoke  but  added  to  the  grand  master's  suspicions  ;  for 
if  the  man  considered  that  the  capture  of  the  city  was  morally 
certain,  it  would  be  simply  throwing  away  his  life  to  enter  it 
as  a  deserter. 

The  grand  master  was,  however,  too  politic  to  betray  any 
doubt  of  George's  sincerity.  Were  he  treated  as  a  traitor, 
Paleologus  might  find  another  agent  to  do  the  work.  It  was, 
therefore,  better  to  feign  a  belief  in  his  story,  to  obtain  all  the 
information  possible  from  him,  and  at  the  same  time  to  prevent 
his  gaining  any  knowledge  of  affairs  that  would  be  of  the  slight- 
est use  to  the  Turks.  Instructions  were  therefore  given  to  the 
two  knights  that,  while  Georges  was  to  be  treated  with  all 
courtesy,  he  was  to  be  strictly  watched,  though  in  such  a  man- 
ner that  he  should  be  in  ignorance  of  it,  and  that,  whenever 
he  turned  his  steps  in  the  direction  of  those  parts  of  the  defences 
where  fresh  works  had  been  recently  added  and  preparations 


THE   FORT   OF   ST.    NICHOLAS  355 

made  of  which  it  was  desirable  the  Turks  should  be  kept  in 
ignorance,  he  was  to  be  met,  as  if  by  accident,  by  one  of  the 
knights  told  off  for  the  purpose,  and  his  steps  diverted  in  an- 
other direction. 

Georges  soon  made  himself  popular  among  many  of  the 
knights,  who  had  no  suspicions  of  his  real  character.  He  was 
a  man  of  exceptional  figure,  tall,  strong,  splendidly  propor- 
tioned, with  a  handsome  face  and  gallant  bearing.  He  was 
extremely  well  informed  on  all  subjects,  had  travelled  widely, 
had  seen  many  adventures,  was  full  of  anecdote,  and  among  the 
younger  knights,  therefore,  he  was  soon  regarded  as  a  charm- 
ing companion.  His  very  popularity  among  them  aided  D' Au- 
busson's  plans,  as  Georges  was  generally  the  centre  of  a  group 
of  listeners,  and  so  had  but  few  opportunities  of  getting  away 
quietly  to  obtain  the  information  he  sought. 

Gervaise  delivered  his  report  to  the  grand  master. 

"  I  am  free  now,"  D'Aubusson  said,  "  and  will  accompany 
you  to  St.  Nicholas.  I  have  been  detained  by  the  coming  of 
this  man  Georges.  He  is  a  clever  knave,  and,  I  doubt  not, 
has  come  as  a  spy.  However,  I  have  taken  measures  that  he 
shall  learn  nothing  that  can  harm  us.  No  lives  have  been  lost 
at  the  tower,  I  hope  ?  ' ' 

"  No,  sir  ;  Caretto  has  forbidden  any  to  show  themselves  on 
the  walls." 

"  He  has  done  well.  This  is  no  time  for  rash  exposure,  and 
where  there  is  naught  to  be  gained,  it  is  a  grave  fault  to  run 
risks." 

On  arriving  at  the  end  of  the  mole,  D'Aubusson,  accom- 
panied by  Caretto,  made  an  investigation  of  the  effect  of  the 
Turks'  fire. 

"  'Tis  worse  than  I  expected,"  he  said.  "When  we  laid 
out  our  fortifications  the  thought  that  such  guns  as  these  would 
be  used  against  them  never  entered  our  minds.  Against  or- 
dinary artillery  the  walls  would  stand  a  long  battering  ;  but 
it  is  clear  that  we  shall  have  to  depend  more  upon  our  swords 


356  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

than  upon  our  walls  for  our  defence.  Fortunately,  although 
the  Turks  have  indeed  chosen  the  spot  where  our  walls  are 
most  open  to  the  assaults  of  their  battery,  they  have  to  cross 
the  water  to  attack  the  breach  when  it  is  made,  and  will  have 
to  fight  under  heavy  disadvantage. ' ' 

"Tresham  was  last  night  saying  to  me,  that  it  seemed  to 
him  it  would  not  be  a  difficult  matter  for  one  who  spoke  Turk- 
ish well,  to  issue  at  night  on  the  other  side  of  the  town,  and 
to  make  his  way  round  to  the  battery,  disguised  of  course  as  a 
Turkish  soldier,  and  then,  mixing  with  the  artillery-men,  to 
drive  a  spike  into  one  of  the  touch-holes.  He  said  that  he 
would  gladly  volunteer  for  the  task." 

D'Aubusson  shook  his  head  decidedly.  "  It  would  be  too 
dangerous  ;  and  even  were  a  spike  driven  in,  the  Turks  would 
have  no  great  difficulty  in  extracting  it,  for  the  tubes  are  so 
big  that  a  man  might  crawl  in  and  drive  the  spike  up  from 
the  inside.  Moreover,  could  one  or  more  of  the  guns  be  dis- 
abled permanently,  others  would  be  brought  down  and  set  in 
their  place,  so  that  nothing  would  be  gained  but  a  very  short 
delay,  which  would  be  of  no  advantage  to  us,  and  certainly 
would  in  no  way  justify  the  risking  of  the  life  of  so  distin- 
guished a  young  knight. ' ' 

The  bombardment  of  St.  Nicholas  continued  for  some  days. 
A  breach  was  fast  forming  in  the  wall,  and  a  slope  composed 
of  the  fallen  rubbish  extended  from  the  front  of  the  breach  to 
the  water's  edge.  The  grand  master  was  frequently  on  the 
spot,  and  as  this  was  at  present  the  sole  object  of  attack,  the 
garrison  was  strengthened  by  as  many  knights  as  could  be 
sheltered  within  its  walls.  At  night  the  shattered  masonry 
that  had  fallen  inside  was  carried  out,  and  with  it  a  new  work 
thrown  up  across  the  mole,  to  strengthen  the  defence  on  that 
side,  should  the  enemy  land  between  the  town  and  the  fort. 
Small  batteries  were  planted  wherever  they  could  sweep  the 
approaches  to  the  breach,  and  planks  studded  with  nails  were 
sunk  in  the  shallow  water  of  the  harbour,  to  impede  the  prog- 


WITH   WILD  SHOUTS   THE  TURKS   SWARMED  UP  THE   RUINED  MASONRY. 


THE    FORT    OF   ST.    NICHOLAS  357 

ress  of  those  who  might  attempt  to  swim  or  wade  across. 
For  the  time,  therefore,  the  functions  of  Gervaise  were  in 
abeyance,  and  he  laboured  with  the  rest  of  the  garrison  at  the 
defences. 

At  daybreak  on  the  gth  of  June,  a  great  number  of  vessels 
and  boats,  crowded  with  soldiers,  bore  down  on  St.  Nicholas. 
As  they  approached,  every  gun  on  the  fortifications  that  could 
be  brought  to  bear  upon  them  opened  fire;  but  in  a  dense 
mass  they  advanced.  Some  made  their  way  to  the  rocks  and 
landed  the  soldiers  there ;  others  got  alongside  the  mole  ;  but 
the  majority  grounded  in  the  shallow  water  of  the  harbour,  and 
the  troops,  leaping  out,  waded  to  the  foot  of  the  breach.  On 
its  crest  D'Aubusson  himself  had  taken  up  his  station.  Beside 
him  stood  Caretto,  and  around  them  the  most  distinguished 
knights  of  the  Order.  With  wild  shouts  the  Turks  rushed  up 
the  breach,  and  swarmed  thickly  up  the  ruined  masonry  un- 
til, at  its  summit,  they  encountered  the  steel-clad  line  of  the 
defenders.  For  hours  the  terrible  struggle  continued.  As  fast 
as  the  head  of  the  Turkish  column  broke  and  melted  away 
against  the  obstacle  they  tried  in  vain  to  penetrate,  fresh  re- 
inforcements took  the  place  of  those  who  had  fallen,  and  in 
point  of  valour  and  devotion  the  Moslem  showed  himself  a 
worthy  antagonist  of  the  Christian.  It  was  not  only  at  the 
breach  that  the  conflict  raged.  At  other  points  the  Turks, 
well  provided  with  ladders,  fixed  them  against  the  walls',  and 
desperately  strove  to  obtain  a  footing  there.  From  the  breach 
clouds  of  dust  rose  from  under  the  feet  of  the  combatants, 
mingling  with  the  smoke  of  the  cannon  on  the  ramparts,  the 
fort,  and  Turkish  ships,  and  at  times  entirely  hid  from  the 
sight  of  the  anxious  spectators  on  the  walls  of  the  town  and 
fortress,  and  of  the  still  more  numerous  throng  of  Turks  on  St. 
Stephen's  Hill,  the  terrible  struggle  that  continued  without  a 
moment's  intermission. 

The  combatants  now  fought  in  comparative  silence.  The 
knights,  exhausted  and  worn  out  by  their  long  efforts  beneath 


358  A   KNIGHT   OF    THE   WHITE   CROSS 

the  blazing  sun,  still  showed  an  unbroken  front ;  but  it  was 
only  occasionally  that  the  battle-cry  of  the  Order  rose  in  the 
air,  as  a  fresh  body  of  assailants  climbed  up  the  corpse-strewn 
breach.  The  yell  of  the  Moslems  rose  less  frequently  ;  they 
sacrificed  their  lives  as  freely  and  devotedly  as  those  who 
led  the  first  onset  had  done  ;  but  as  the  hours  wore  on,  the 
assurance  of  victory  died  out,  and  a  doubt  as  to  whether  it  was 
possible  to  break  through  the  line  of  their  terrible  foes  gained 
ground.  D' Aubusson  himself,  although,  in  spite  of  the  remon- 
strances of  the  knights,  always  in  the  thickest  of  the  fray,  was 
yet  ever  watchful,  and  quickly  perceived  where  the  defenders 
were  hotly  pressed,  and  where  support  was  most  needed.  Ger- 
vaise  fought  by  his  side,  so  that,  when  necessary,  he  could 
carry  his  orders  to  a  little  body  of  knights,  drawn  up  in  re- 
serve, and  despatch  them  to  any  point  where  aid  was  needed. 

The  cannon  still  continued  their  fire  on  both  sides.  A  frag- 
ment of  one  of  the  stone  balls  from  a  basilisk  struck  off 
D'Aubusson's  helmet.  He  selected  another  from  among  the 
fallen  knights,  and  resumed  his  place  in  the  line.  Still  the 
contest  showed  no  signs  of  terminating.  The  Turkish  galleys 
ever  brought  up  reinforcements,  while  the  defenders  grew 
fewer,  and  more  exhausted.  During  a  momentary  pause,  while 
a  fresh  body  of  Turks  were  landing,  Gervaise  said  to  the  grand 
master, — 

"  If  you  will  give  me  leave,  sir,  I  will  go  out  at  the  water- 
gate,  swim  up^he  inner  harbour,  and  in  a  very  short  time  turn 
a  few  of  the  craft  lying  there  into  fire-ships,  and  tow  them  out 
,  with  a  couple  of  galleys.  At  any  rate,  we  can  fire  all  these 
craft  that  have  grounded,  and  create  a  panic  among  the  others. ' ' 

"  Well  thought  of,  Gervaise  !  I  will  write  an  order  on  one 
of  my  tablets.  Do  you  take  my  place  for  a  minute. ' ' 

Withdrawing  behind  the  line,  the  grand  master  sat  down 
on  a  fragment  of  stone,  and,  drawing  a  tablet  from  a  pouch  in 
his  girdle,  he  wrote  on  it, — 

"In  all  things  carry  out  the  instructions  of  Sir  Gervaise 


THE    FORT   OF1   ST.    NICHOLAS  359 

Tresham  :  he  is  acting  by  my  orders  and  authority,  and  has 
full  power  in  all  respects." 

He  handed  the  slip  of  parchment  to  Gervaise,  who  hurried 
to  the  water-gate  in  the  inner  harbour,  threw  off  his  helmet 
and  armour,  issued  out  at  the  gate,  and  plunged  into  the  sea. 
He  swam  out  some  distance,  in  order  to  avoid  the  missiles  of 
the  Turks,  who  were  trying  to  scale  the  wall  from  the  mole, 
and  then  directed  his  course  to  St.  Michael's,  which  guarded 
the  inner  entrance  to  the  fort.  He  had  fastened  the  parch- 
ment in  his  hair,  and  as  some  of  the  garrison  of  the  tower, 
noticing  his  approach,  came  down  to  assist  him,  he  handed  it 
to  them  and  was  at  once  taken  to  the  commander  of  St. 
Michael,  answering  as  he  went  the  anxious  questions  as  to  how 
matters  stood  at  the  breach. 

"  Aid  is  sorely  needed.  The  Turks  have  gained  no  foot  of 
ground  as  yet,  but  many  of  the  knights  are  killed  and  most  of 
the  others  utterly  exhausted  with  heat  and  labour.  Unless  aid 
reaches  them  speedily,  the  tower,  with  all  its  defenders,  will  be 
lost." 

The  instant  the  commander  knew  what  was  required,  he 
bade  six  of  the  knights  embark  with  Gervaise  in  a  boat  moored 
behind  the  tower,  and  row  up  the  harbour  to  the  spot  where 
the  shipping  was  all  massed  together,  protected  by  the  high 
ground  of  the  fortress  from  the  Turkish  fire.  Gervaise  waved 
his  hand,  as  he  neared  the  end  of  the  harbour,  to  the  officer 
on  the  walls,  and  while  the  six  knights  who  were  with  him  ran 
off  to  tell  the  master  of  the  galleys  to  prepare  two  of  them  to 
leave  the  port  instantly,  Gervaise  explained  to  the  officer  in 
charge  of  the  wall  at  that  point  the  plan  that  he  was  charged  to 
carry  out,  and  asked  for  twenty  knights  to  assist  him. 

"  It  will  leave  us  very  weak  along  here,"  the  officer  said. 

"  Then  let  me  have  ten,  and  send  for  another  ten  from 
other  parts  of  the  wall.  Here  is  the  grand  master's  order, 
giving  me  full  power  and  authority,  and  it  is  all-important  that 
no  single  moment  shall  be  wasted." 


360  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  You  shall  have  twenty  of  mine,"  the  officer  said,  "  and  I 
will  draw  ten  from  the  langue  next  to  us  to  fill  their  places." 

In  a  few  minutes  the  quay  was  a  scene  of  bustle  and  activity. 
Gervaise  picked  out  ten  of  the  smallest  vessels ;  the  knights 
went  among  the  other  ships,  seized  all  goods  and  stores  that 
would  be  useful  as  combustibles,  and  compelled  the  crews  to 
carry  them  on  board  the  craft  chosen  as  fire-ships.  Then  bar- 
rels were  broken  open,  old  sails  and  faggots  saturated  with  oil 
and  pitch,  and  in  little  more  than  a  quarter  of  an  hour  after 
his  arrival,  Gervaise  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  that  the 
ten  boats  were  all  filled  with  combustibles,  and  ready  to  be  set 
on  fire.  He  now  called  for  volunteers  from  the  sailors,  and  a 
number  of  them  at  once  came  forward,  including  many  of  the 
captains.  He  placed  one  of  these  in  command  of  each  fire- 
ship,  and  gave  him  four  of  the  sailors. 

"  The  galleys  will  tow  you  out,"  he  said,  "  and  take  you 
close  to  the  enemy's  ships.  We  shall  range  you  five  abreast, 
and  when  I  give  the  word,  the  one  at  the  end  of  the  line  will 
steer  for  the  nearest  Turk,  and,  with  oars  and  poles,  get  along- 
side. The  captain  will  then  light  the  train  of  powder  in  the 
hold,  throw  the  torch  among  the  straw,  and  see  that,  if  pos- 
sible, the  men  fasten  her  to  the  Turk  ;  but  if  this  cannot  be 
done,  it  is  not  essential,  for  in  the  confusion  the  enemy  will 
not  be  able  to  get  out  of  the  way  of  the  fire-ship  as  it  drives 
down  against  her.  At  the  last  moment  you  will  take  to  your 
boats  and  row  back  here.  We  will  protect  you  from  the  as- 
saults of  any  of  the  Turkish  ships. ' ' 

Having  made  sure  that  all  the  captains  understood  the  or- 
ders, Gervaise  took  command  of  one  of  the  galleys,  the  senior 
knight  going  on  board  the  other.  The  ten  fire-ships  were  now 
poled  out  until  five  were  ranged  abreast  behind  each  craft ;  Ger- 
vaise requested  the  commander  of  the  other  galley  to  lie  off  the 
point  of  St.  Nicholas  until  he  had  got  rid  of  his  five  fire-ships, 
then  to  advance  and  launch  his  craft  against  the  Turks.  The 
smoke  of  the  guns  lay  so  heavy  on  the  water,  and  the  combat- 


THE   FORT    OF   ST.    NICHOLAS  361 

ants  were  so  intent  upon  the  struggle  at  the  breach,  that  Ger- 
vaise  steered  his  galley  into  the  midst  of  the  Turkish  vessels 
laden  with  troops  ready  to  disembark,  without  attracting  any 
notice ;  then,  standing  upon  the  taffrail,  he  signalled  to  the 
two  outside  boats  to  throw  off  their  ropes  and  make  for  the 
Turkish  ship  nearest  to  them.  This  they  did,  and  it  was  not 
until  a  sheet  of  flame  rose  alongside,  that  the  enemy  awoke  to 
the  sense  of  danger. 

The  other  three  fire-ships  were  almost  immediately  cast  off. 
Two  of  them  were  equally  successful,  but  the  Turks  managed  to 
thrust  off  the  third.  She  drifted,  however,  through  the  ship- 
ping, and  presently  brought  up  alongside  one  of  the  vessels 
fast  aground.  With  but  ten  knights,  Gervaise  could  not  attack 
one  of  the  larger  vessels,  crowded  with  troops  ;  but  there  were 
many  fishing-boats  that  had  been  pressed  into  the  service,  and 
against  one  of  these  Gervaise  ordered  the  men  to  steer  the 
galley.  A  shout  to  the  rowers  made  them  redouble  their 
efforts.  A  yell  of  dismay  arose  from  the  Turkish  troops  as 
they  saw  the  galley  bearing  down  upon  them,  and  frantic 
efforts  were  made  to  row  out  of  her  way.  These  were  in  vain, 
for  her  sharp  prow  struck  them  amidships,  cutting  the  boat  al- 
most in  two,  and  she  sank  like  a  stone,  the  galley,  without  a 
pause,  making  for  another  boat. 

Looking  back,  Gervaise  saw  that  his  consort  was  already  in 
the  midst  of  the  Turks,  among  whom  the  wildest  confusion 
prevailed,  each  ship  trying  to  extricate  herself  from  the  mass, 
upon  which  the  batteries  of  the  fortress  now  concentrated  their 
efforts.  Two  fresh  columns  of  flame  had  already  shot  up,  and 
satisfied  that  all  was  going  well,  Gervaise  continued  his  attack 
upon  the  smaller  craft,  six  of  whom  were  overtaken  and  sunk. 
Three  or  four  of  the  larger  vessels  endeavoured  to  lay  them- 
selves alongside  the  galley,  but  her  speed  was  so  superior  to 
theirs  that  she  easily  evaded  the  attempts,  and,  sweeping  round, 
rejoined  the  other  galley  which  had  just  issued  from  among  the 
Turks,  who  were  already  in  full  retreat.  The  defenders  of  St. 


362  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

Nicholas,  re-animated  by  the  sight  of  the  discomfiture  of  the 
Turkish  fleet,  with  a  loud  shout  rushed  down  from  the  spot 
which  they  had  held  for  so  many  hours,  drove  their  assailants 
before  them,  and  flung  themselves  upon  the  crowd  assembled 
at  the  foot  of  the  breach. 

These  had  already  suffered  terribly  from  the  fire  of  the  bat- 
teries. Again  and  again  they  had  striven  to  storm  the  mound 
of  rubbish,  and  had  each  time  been  repulsed,  with  the  loss  of 
their  bravest  leaders.  Seeing  themselves  abandoned  by  the 
ships,  a  panic  seized  them,  and  as  the  knights  rushed  down 
upon  them  they  relinquished  all  thoughts  of  resistance,  and 
dashed  into  the  shallow  water.  Many  were  drowned  in  the 
attempt  to  swim  across  the  deep  channel  in  the  middle,  some 
succeeded,  while  others  made  their  escape  in  the  boats  in  which 
they  had  been  brought  ashore  from  the  ships. 

The  struggle  was  over.  The  two  galleys  made  for  the  breach, 
and  the  knights  leapt  out  as  soon  as  the  boats  grounded,  and, 
wading  ashore,  joined  the  group  that  had  so  long  and  gallantly 
sustained  the  unequal  fight.  Fatigue,  exhaustion,  and  wounds, 
were  forgotten  in  the  triumph  of  the  moment,  and  they  crowded 
round  the  grand  master  and  Caretto,  to  whose  joint  exertions 
the  success  of  the  defence  was  so  largely  due. 

"  Do  not  thank  me,  comrades,"  D'Aubusson said.  "No  man 
has  to-day  fought  better  than  the  rest.  Every  knight  has  shown 
himself  worthy  of  the  fame  of  our  Order.  The  meed  of  praise 
for  our  success  is  first  due  to  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham.  At  the 
moment  when  I  began  to  doubt  whether  we  could  much  longer 
withstand  the  swarms  of  fresh  foes  who  continued  to  pour 
against  us,  while  we  were  overcome  by  heat  and  labour,  Sir 
Gervaise,  who  had  throughout  been  fighting  at  my  side,  of- 
fered to  swim  into  the  port,  to  fit  out  a  dozen  of  the  merchant 
craft  there  as  fire-ships,  and  to  tow  them  round  into  the  midst 
of  the  Turkish  vessels  behind  the  two  galleys  that  were  lying 
ready  for  service.  I  remembered  how  he  had  before  destroyed 
the  corsair  fleet  at  Sardinia  with  fire-ships,  and  the  proposal 


THE   FORT   OF   ST.    NICHOLAS  363 

seemed  to  me  as  an  inspiration  sent  from  Heaven,  at  this  mo- 
ment of  our  great  peril.  I  wrote  him  an  order,  giving  him 
full  authority  to  act  in  my  name,  and  in  a  time  that  seemed 
to  me  incredibly  short  I  saw  him  round  the  point  with  the  fire- 
ships  in  tow.  You  saw,  as  well  as  I  did,  how  completely  the 
plan  was  carried  out.  Ten  or  twelve  of  the  Turkish  ships  are 
a  mass  of  flames,  and  besides  these  I  noted  that  the  galley  ran 
down  and  destroyed  several  smaller  craft  filled  with  soldiers. 
The  panic  in  the  ships  spread  to  the  troops  on  shore,  and  ren- 
dered the  last  part  of  our  task  an  easy  one.  I  say  it  from  my 
heart  that  I  consider  it  is  to  Sir  Gervaise  Tresham  that  we  owe 
our  success,  and  that,  had  it  not  been  for  his  happy  thought, 
the  sun  would  have  gone  down  on  our  dead  bodies  lying  on 
the  summit  of  the  breach,  and  on  the  Turkish  flag  waving  over 
the  fort  of  St.  Nicholas." 

Until  now  none  of  the  defenders  of  the  breach  had  known 
how,  what  seemed  to  them  an  almost  miraculous  change  in 
the  fortune  of  the  fight,  had  come  about,  and  they  thronged 
round  Gervaise,  shaking  his  hand,  and  many  of  them  warmly 
embracing  him,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  time. 

"  It  was  but  natural  that  the  idea  should  occur  to  me,"  he 
said,  "having  before  successfully  encountered  them  with  fire- 
ships  ;  and  as  all  on  shore,  and  especially  these  knights,  aided 
me  with  all  their  power,  it  took  but  a  brief  time  to  get  the 
boats  in  readiness  for  burning.  Much  credit,  too,  is  due  to  the 
merchant  captains  and  sailors  who  volunteered  to  take  charge 
of  the  fire-ships  and  to  manoeuvre  them  alongside  the  Turks." 

The  grand  master  and  the  knights  who  had  borne  the  brunt 
of  the  battle  now  retired  along  the  mole  to  the  town,  bearing 
with  them  their  most  seriously  wounded  comrades,  and  assist- 
ing those  whose  wounds  were  less  severe.  The  twenty  knights 
who  had  manned  the  two  galleys  remained  in  the  fort.  Ca- 
retto  continued  in  command,  as,  although  he  had  suffered 
several  wounds,  he  refused  to  relinquish  his  post.  Gervaise, 
who  had, — thanks  partly  to  his  skill  with  his  weapons,  but  still 


364  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

more  to  the  temper  of  the  splendid  suit  of  armour  presented 
to  him  by  Genoa, — escaped  without  a  scratch,  volunteered  to 
remain  with  him  until  next  morning,  his  principal  motive  for 
making  the  request  being  his  desire  to  escape  from  further  con- 
gratulations and  praise  for  the  success  of  his  plan.  After 
Caretto's  wounds  had  been  dressed  by  the  knights,  and  he  and 
Gervaise  had  partaken  of  some  food  and  wine,  which  they 
greatly  needed,  Caretto  was  persuaded  to  lie  down  for  a  time, 
the  knights  promising  to  bring  him  word  at  once  if  they  per- 
ceived any  movement  whatever  on  the  part  of  the  enemy. 
Gervaise  remained  with  him,  feeling,  now  the  excitement  was 
over,  that  he  sorely  needed  rest  after  his  exertions  in  the  full 
heat  of  the  summer  sun. 

"It  has 'been  a  great  day,  Gervaise,"  Caretto  said,  "and 
I  only  hope  that  when  again  I  go  into  battle  with  the  infidel, 
I  shall  have  you  at  hand  to  come  forward  at  the  critical  mo- 
ment with  some  master-stroke  to  secure  victory.  Claudia  will 
be  pleased  indeed  when  she  hears  how  the  knight  who  bears 
her  gage  has  again  distinguished  himself.  She  will  look  on 
the  gay  and  idle  young  fops  of  Genoa  with  greater  disdain 
than  ever.  Now  you  need  not  say  anything  in  protest,  the 
more  so  as  I  feel  grievously  weak,  and  disposed  for  sleep. ' ' 


CHAPTER   XXII 

THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH 

TWO  hours  later  Caretto  and  Gervaise  were  roused  by  the 
arrival  of  a  hundred  knights  in  place  of  the  previous 
garrison  ;  these  bore  the  news  that  the  pasha  had  sent  in  a  flag 
of  truce  to  ask  for  an  armistice  until  sundown,  to  enable  him 
to  carry  off  for  burial  the  bodies  of  those  who  had  fallen  in  the 
attack.  The  request  had  been  willingly  granted  ;  but  D'Au- 


THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH  365 

busson  had  at  the  same  time  thought  it  well  to  send  down  a 
strong  reinforcement  to  the  garrison  to  prevent  any  attempt  at 
treachery  on  the  part  of  the  Turks. 

"  I  have  seldom  heard  pleasanter  news,"  Caretto  said ;  "for 
just  as  I  fell  asleep  I  was  wondering  how  we  were  to  rid  our- 
selves of  the  corpses  of  the  infidels.  By  to-morrow  the  place 
would  have  become  unbearable  ;  and  though,  living,  the  Turks 
could  not  turn  us  out  of  the  tower,  they  would  when  dead 
speedily  have  rid  the  place  of  us." 

In  half  an  hour  a  number  of  Moslem  vessels  were  seen  ap- 
proaching. Caretto  did  not  wish  the  Turks  to  imagine  that 
he  doubted  their  good  faith,  and  while  directing  the  main  body 
of  knights  to  remain  in  concealment  near  the  breach,  he 
placed  two  on  sentry  duty  on  the  crest  of  the  ruins,  and,  with 
four  other  knights  and  Gervaise,  went  down  in  complete  armour 
to  salute  the  officer  in  command  of  the  burying  party,  as  he 
landed  from  the  boats.  The  ships  anchored  a  short  distance 
out,  and  a  number  of  boats  rowed  from  them  to  the  shore.  As 
the  Turkish  officer  landed,  Caretto  saluted  him,  and  said  in 
Arabic, — 

"  I  give  you  courteous  greeting,  Sir.  When  the  cannon 
cease  to  sound  and  swords  are  sheathed,  there  is  no  longer  ani- 
mosity between  brave  men ;  and  no  braver  than  those  whose 
bodies  lie  stretched  there,  breathed  the  air  of  heaven.  If,  sir, 
I  and  the  knights  with  me  do  not  uncover  our  heads,  it  is  from 
no  want  of  respect  for  the  dead,  but  solely  because  we  dare  not 
stand  bareheaded  under  the  fierce  rays  of  the  sun." 

The  Turk  answered  with  equal  courtesy,  complimenting  the 
knights  on  their  defence. 

"  Had  I  not  seen  it  with  my  own  eyes,"  he  said,  "  I  should 
have  deemed  it  altogether  impossible  that  so  small  a  number  of 
men  could  thus  for  hours  have  withstood  the  attacks  of  some 
of  the  best  of  the  sultan's  troops.  Tales  have  come  down  to 
us  from  our  fathers  of  the  marvellous  prowess  of  the  knights  of 
your  Order,  and  how  at  Smyrna,  at  Acre,  and  elsewhere,  they 


366  A    KNIGHT    OF   THE    WHITE   CROSS 

performed  such  feats  of  valour  that  their  name  is  still  used  by 
Turkish  mothers  as  a  bugbear  to  frighten  their  children.  But 
the  stories  have  always  seemed  to  me  incredible ;  now  I  per- 
ceive they  were  true,  and  that  the  present  members  of  the  Or- 
der in  no  way  fall  short  of  the  valour  of  their  predecessors. ' ' 

The  knights  remained  with  the  Turkish  commander  and 
some  of  his  officers  while  the  work  of  collecting  and  carrying 
away  the  dead  was  performed,  the  conversation  on  their  side 
being  supported  by  Caretto  and  Gervaise.  No  less  than  seven 
hundred  bodies  were  carried  down  to  the  boats,  besides  a  great 
many  wounded  by  the  artillery  fire.  None  were,  however, 
found  breathing  among  the  great  pile  of  dead  at  the  upper 
part  of  the  breach,  for  the  axes  and  double-handed  swords  of 
the  knights  had,  in  most  of  the  cases,  cleft  through  turban  and 
skull. 

"This  represents  but  part  of  our  loss,"  the  Turkish  com- 
mander said  sadly,  as  the  last  party  came  down  with  their  bur- 
dens to  the  boats.  "At  least  as  many  more  must  have  per- 
ished in  the  sea,  either  in  their  endeavours  to  escape  when  all 
was  lost,  in  the  destruction  of  their  vessels  by  fire,  by  the  shot 
from  your  batteries,  or  by  being  run  down  by  your  galleys. 
Ah,  Sir  Knight,  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  appearance  of  your 
fire-ships,  methinks  the  matter  might  have  ended  differently." 

"  In  that  I  altogether  agree  with  you,"  Caretto  said.  "  We 
were  indeed,  well-nigh  spent,  and  must  have  soon  succumbed 
had  it  not  been  that  the  fire-ships  arrived  to  our  rescue.  You 
have  a  fair  right  to  claim  that  the  victory  would  have  remained 
in  your  hands,  had  not  those  craft  gone  out  and  snatched  it 
from  you." 

Then,  with  salutes  on  both  sides,  the  Turks  took  their  places 
in  the  boats,  and  the  knights  returned  to  the  fort.  As  soon  as 
darkness  came  on,  a  large  body  of  slaves  were  marched  down 
from  the  town,  and,  under  the  direction  of  the  knights,  laboured 
all  night  at  the  mound,  removing  great  quantities  of  the  fallen 
stones  and  rubbish  in  a  line  halfway  up  it,  and  piling  them 


THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH  367 

above  so  as  to  form  a  scarp  across  the  mound  that  would  need 
ladders  to  ascend.  Another  party  worked  at  the  top  of  the 
mound,  and  there  built  up  a  wall  eight  feet  high.  The  work 
was  completed  by  daylight,  and  the  knights  felt  that  they  were 
now  in  a  position  to  resist  another  attack,  should  Paleologus 
again  send  his  troops  to  the  assault. 

The  night  had  passed  quietly.  There  was  a  sound  of  stir 
and  movement  in  the  Turkish  battery,  but  nothing  that  would 
excite  the  suspicion  of  a  large  body  of  troops  being  in  motion. 
When  it  became  light  it  was  seen  that  the  Turkish  ships  had 
sailed  away  to  their  previous  anchorage  on  the  other  side  of  the 
Island,  and  although  at  considerable  intervals  the  great  cannon 
hurled  their  missiles  against  the  fort,  it  was  evident  that,  for 
the  time  at  least,  the  attack  was  not  to  be  pressed  at  that  point. 
A  fresh  body  of  slaves,  however,  came  down  from  the  town  to 
relieve  those  who  had  been  all  night  at  work,  and  the  repair  of 
the  defences  was  continued,  and  with  greater  neatness  and 
method  than  had  been  possible  in  the  darkness. 

At  eight  o'clock  the  bells  of  St.  John's  Church  gave  notice 
that  a  solemn  service  of  thanksgiving  for  the  repulse  of  the 
enemy  was  about  to  be  held.  Notice  had  been  sent  down  early 
to  the  tower,  and  all  the  knights  who  could  be  spared,  without 
too  greatly  weakening  the  garrison,  went  up  to  attend  it ;  the 
service  was  conducted  with  all  the  pomp  and  ceremony  pos- 
sible, and  after  it  was  over  a  great  procession  was  formed  to 
proceed  to  the  shrine,  where  a  picture  of  the  Virgin  held  in 
special  reverence  by  the  Order  was  placed. 

As  it  wound  through  the  streets  in  splendid  array,  the 
grand  master  and  officials  in  all  their  robes  of  state,  the 
knights  in  full  armour  and  the  mantles  of  the  Order,  while 
the  inhabitants  in  gala  costume  lined  the  streets,  windows,  and 
house-tops,  the  ladies  waving  scarves  and  scattering  flowers 
down  on  the  knights^  the  roar  of  great  cannon  on  the  south 
side  of  the  city  showed  that  the  Turks  had  commenced  the  at- 
tack in  another  quarter.  Without  pausing,  the  procession 


368  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

continued  its  way,  and  it  was  not  until  the  service  in  the  chapel 
had  been  concluded  that  any  steps  were  taken  to  ascertain  the 
direction  of  the  attack.  As  soon  as  it  was  over,  the  knights 
hastened  to  the  walls.  During  the  night  the  Turks  had  trans- 
ported their  great  basilisks,  with  other  large  pieces  of  artillery, 
from  the  camp  to  the  rising  ground  on  the  south  side  of  the 
city,  and  had  opened  fire  against  the  wall  covering  the  Jews' 
quarter,  and  at  the  same  time  against  the  tower  of  St.  Mary 
on  the  one  hand  and  the  Italian  tower  on  the  other. 

From  other  commanding  spots  huge  mortars  were  hurling 
great  fragments  of  rock  and  other  missiles  broadcast  into  the 
town.  The  portion  of  the  wall  selected  for  the  attack  showed 
that  the  Turks  had  been  well  informed  by  their  spies  of  the 
weak  points  of  the  defence.  The  wall  behind  which  the  Jews' 
quarter  lay,  was,  to  all  appearance,  of  thick  and  solid  masonry; 
but  this  was  really  of  great  age,  having  formed  part  of  the 
original  defences  of  the  town,  before  the  Order  had  established 
itself  there.  The  masonry,  therefore,  was  ill  fitted  to  resist 
the  huge  balls  hurled  against  it  by  the  basilisks.  The  langue  of 
Provence  was  in  charge  of  this  part  of  the  wall,  and,  leaving 
them  for  the  present  to  bear  the  brunt  of  the  storm,  the  grand 
master  sent  the  knights  who  could  be  spared,  to  assist  the  in- 
habitants to  erect  shelters  against  the  storm  of  missiles  falling 
in  the  town. 

Sheds  with  sharply-sloping  roofs,  constructed  of  solid  timber, 
were  built  against  the  inner  side  of  the  walls,  and  beneath 
these  numbers  of  the  inhabitants  found  refuge.  The  work 
was  performed  with  great  celerity  by  the  inhabitants,  aided  by 
the  gangs  of  slaves,  and  in  two  or  three  days  the  townspeople 
were  all  in  shelter,  either  in  these  sheds,  in  the  vaults  of  the 
churches,  or  in  other  strongly-constructed  buildings. 

Among  the  missiles  hurled  into  the  town  were  balls  filled 
with  Greek  fire,  but  the  houses  being  entirely  built  of  stone, 
no  conflagrations  of  importance  were  caused  by  them,  as  a 
band  of  knights  was  organised  specially  to  watch  for  these 


THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH  369 

bombs,  and  whenever  one  of  them  was  seen  to  fall,  they  hur- 
ried from  their  look-out  to  the  spot,  with  a  gang  of  slaves 
carrying  baskets  of  earth  and  buckets  of  water,  and  quenched 
the  flames  before  they  had  made  any  great  headway. 

The  roar  of  the  bombardment  was  almost  continuous,  and 
was  heard  at  islands  distant  from  Rhodes,  telling  the  inhabi- 
tants how  the  battle  between  the  Christians  and  the  Moslems 
was  raging. 

It  was  not  long  before  the  wall  in  the  front  of  the  Jews' 
quarter  began  to  crumble,  and  it  was  soon  evident  that  it  must, 
ere  many  days,  succumb  to  the  storm  of  missiles  hurled 
against  it.  D'Aubusson  lost  no  time  in  making  preparations 
to  avert  the  danger.  He  ordered  all  the  houses  in  rear  of  the 
wall  to  be  levelled  ;  a  deep  semi-circular  ditch  was  then  dug, 
and  behind  this  a  new  wall,  constructed  of  the  stones  and  bricks 
from  the  houses  destroyed,  was  built,  and  backed  with  an 
earthen  rampart  of  great  thickness  and  solidity. 

The  work  was  carried  on  with  extraordinary  rapidity.  The 
grand  master  himself  set  the  example,  and,  throwing  aside  his 
robes  and  armour,  laboured  with  pick  and  shovel  like  the  com- 
monest labourer.  This  excited  the  people  to  the  highest  pitch 
of  enthusiasm,  and  all  classes  threw  themselves  into  the  task. 
Knights  and  slaves,  men,  women,  and  children,  and  even  the 
inmates  of  the  convents  and  nunneries,  aided  in  the  work,  and 
when  at  last  the  outer  wall  fell,  and  the  Turks  thought  that 
success  was  at  hand,  the  pasha  saw  with  astonishment  and  dis- 
may that  entry  to  the  city  was  still  barred  by  a  work  as  for- 
midable as  that  which  he  had  destroyed  at  an  enormous  ex- 
penditure of  ammunition.  There  was  now  a  short  breathing 
time  for  the  besieged  ;  but  the  depression  which  the  failure  of 
their  efforts  excited  among  the  Turks,  was  shortly  dispelled  by 
the  arrival  of  a  ship,  with  a  despatch  from  Constantinople,  in 
which  the  pasha  was  informed  that  the  sultan  himself  was  about 
to  proceed  to  Rhodes  with  a  reinforcement  of  a  hundred  thou- 
sand men,  and  a  fresh  park  of  artillery. 


370  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

Paleologus  had  some  doubts  as  to  whether  the  report  was 
true  or  was  merely  intended  to  stimulate  him  to  new  efforts 
for  the  speedy  capture  of  the  place.  Knowing  well  that  the 
grand  master  was  the  heart  and  soul  of  the  defence,  and  that 
the  failure  of  the  assault  was  mainly  due  to  his  energy  and 
ability,  he  determined  to  resort  to  the  weapon  so  frequently  in 
use  in  Eastern  warfare — that  of  assassination.  To  this  end  he 
employed  two  men,  one  a  Dalmatian,  the  other  an  Albanian ; 
these  presented  themselves  before  the  walls  as  deserters,  and  as 
there  was  no  reason  for  suspecting  their  tale,  they  were  ad- 
mitted within  the  gates,  and  welcomed  as  having  escaped  from 
enforced  service.  They  soon  spread  the  tale  of  the  speedy 
coming  of  the  sultan  with  vast  reinforcements,  and  as  the  pasha 
had  on  the  previous  day  caused  salutes  to  be  fired,  and  other 
demonstrations  to  be  made,  the  news  was  readily  credited,  and 
caused  the  greatest  dismay  among  the  defenders. 

Some  of  the  knights  of  the  Italian  and  Spanish  langues 
believed  the  prospect  of  a  successful  defence  against  so  enormous 
a  force  was  absolutely  hopeless,  and  determined  to  put  pressure 
upon  D'Aubusson  to  treat  for  surrender  before  it  became  too 
late.  They  opened  negotiations  with  an  Italian  named  Filelfo, 
one  of  D'Aubusson's  secretaries,  who  undertook  to  lay  their 
opinion  before  the  grand  master.  D'Aubusson  at  once  sum- 
moned the  knights  concerned  in  the  matter  before  him.  They 
found  him  with  several  members  of  the  council. 

"  Sir  Knights,"  he  said,  "  I  have  heard  from  my  secretary 
your  opinions  in  the  matter  of  a  surrender,  and  since  you  are 
in  such  terror  of  the  Moslem  sultan,  you  have  my  full  permis- 
sion to  leave  the  town  ;  and,  more  than  that,  I  will  myself 
secure  your  safe  departure,  which  might  be  imperilled  if  your 
comrades  or  even  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  came  to  learn 
that  you  had  advocated  surrender ;  but,"  he  went  on,  changing 
his  tone  from  that  of  sarcasm  to  sternness,  "  if  you  remain 
with  us,  see  that  the  word  surrender  never  again  passes  your 
lips,  and  be  assured  that,  should  you  continue  your  intrigues 


THE   STRUGGLE   AT   THE   BREACH  371 

in  that  direction,  you  shall  meet  with  the  fate  you  so  justly 
deserve. ' ' 

Overwhelmed  by  the  grand  master's  accusation  and  stern- 
ness, the  Italian  and  Spanish  knights  threw  themselves  on  their 
knees  and  implored  him  to  grant  them  an  early  opportunity  of 
retrieving  their  fault  by  battle  with  the  infidel.  Feeling  that 
the  lesson  had  been  sufficiently  severe,  and  that  henceforth 
there  would  be  no  renewal  of  intrigues  for  a  surrender,  D' Au- 
busson  forgave  them,  and  promised  them  a  place  in  the  van 
when  next  the  Moslems  attacked.  The  incident  was  not  with- 
out its  advantage,  for  the  two  pretended  deserters,  believing 
that  Filelfo,  who  had  also  fallen  under  the  displeasure  of  the 
grand  master,  would  be  ready  to  join  in  the  conspiracy  against 
his  life,  approached  him.  Filelfo,  who  was  greatly  attached  to 
D'Aubusson,  saw  by  their  manner  that  they  wished  to  engage 
him  in  some  intrigue,  and,  feigning  great  resentment  and  anger 
at  his  disgrace,  led  them  on  until  they  divulged  the  entire  plot 
for  D'Aubusson's  assassination,  and  made  brilliant  offers  to 
him  if  he  would  afford  them  facilities  for  carrying  it  out,  pro- 
ducing, in  proof  of  their  power  to  do  so,  a  letter  of  the  pasha, 
authorising  them  to  make  such  promises  in  his  name. 

Filelfo  at  once  divulged  the  whole  plot  to  D'Aubusson.  The 
two  men  were  immediately  arrested,  tried  by  the  council,  and 
sentenced  to  death.  They  were  not,  however,  formally  exe- 
cuted, for  the  populace,  obtaining  news  of  their  treachery, 
broke  in  upon  their  guards,  and  tore  them  to  pieces.  Foiled 
in  his  attempt  on  the  life  of  the  grand  master,  the  pasha  pre- 
pared for  a  renewal  of  the  attack,  and  it  was  not  long  before 
the  knights  on  the  look-out  at  the  church  of  St.  John  perceived 
that  the  fort  of  St.  Nicholas  was  again  to  be  the  scene  of  the 
attack.  It  was  ere  long  discovered  that  a  large  number  of 
men  were  busy  some  distance  along  the  shore  in  building  a 
long  structure,  that  could  only  be  intended  for  a  floating 
bridge. 

Among  the  sailors  who  had  aided   in  the  attack  with  the 


372  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

fire-ships  were  several  men  belonging  to  an  English  trader  in 
the  port.  All  who  had  done  so  had  been  handsomely  rewarded 
for  their  conduct,  and  five  of  the  Englishmen  had  afterwards 
gone  to  the  English  auberge  and  had  asked  to  be  enrolled  for 
service  against  the  Turks,  as  they  were  weary  of  remaining  on 
board  in  idleness  when  there  was  work  to  be  done.  Their 
offer  had  been  accepted,  and  they  had,  in  common  with  all 
the  sailors  in  the  port,  laboured  at  the  construction  of  the 
inner  wall.  When  that  was  completed,  Sir  John  Boswell, 
under  whose  special  charge  they  had  been  placed,  said  to  Ger- 
vaise, — 

"  I  think  that  I  cannot  do  better  than  send  these  men  down 
to  St.  Nicholas.  It  is  probable  that  now  the  Turks  see  that 
they  can  do  nothing  at  the  new  breach,  they  may  try  again 
there.  Sailors  are  accustomed  to  night-watches,  and  there  are 
many  of  our  knights  who  are  not  used  to  such  work,  and  can 
be  better  trusted  to  defend  a  breach  than  to  keep  a  vigilant 
watch  at  night.  Will  you  take  these  men  down  to  Caretto, 
and  tell  him  that  he  can  sleep  soundly  if  he  has  a  couple  of 
them  on  watch  ?  One  of  them,  Roger  Jervis,  who  is  the  mate 
of  their  ship,  can  speak  some  Italian,  and  as  he  is  in  command 
of  them,  Caretto  will  find  no  trouble  in  making  them  under- 
stand him." 

St.  Nicholas  had  now  been  put  into  a  fair  state  of  defence, 
as  a  party  had  been  kept  steadily  at  work  there.  Gervaise  had 
not  been  to  the  tower  since  the  morning  after  the  assault,  and 
saw  with  satisfaction  how  much  had  been  done  to  render  it 
secure.  He  found  that  Caretto  was  fast  recovering  from  his 
wounds. 

"  As  it  seems  probable,  Sir  Fabricius,"  he  said,  after  the 
first  greetings  to  the  knight,  "  that  the  Turks  will  favour  you 
with  another  visit,  I  have  brought  you  five  watch-dogs.  They 
are  countrymen  of  mine,  and  were  among  those  who  navigated 
the  fire-ships  the  other  day.  Sir  John  Boswell  has  sent  them 
down  ;  they  are,  of  course,  accustomed  to  keep  watch  at  night. 


THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH          373 

One  of  them  is  mate  of  their  vessel,  and  will  be  in  command 
of  them  ;  he  speaks  a  little  Italian,  and  so  will  understand  any 
orders  you  may  give  him.  I  have  been  speaking  to  him  as  we 
came  down ;  he  will  divide  his  men  into  two  watches,  and 
will  himself  be  on  guard  all  night.  Will  you  assign  them 
some  quiet  place  where  they  can  sleep  in  the  daytime?  They 
can  erect  a  shelter  with  a  piece  of  sail-cloth  and  a  few  bits  of 
board,  and  they  will,  of  course,  be  furnished  with  food." 

' '  I  shall  be  very  glad  to  have  them,  for  I  am  always  restless 
at  night,  lest  those  on  watch  should  close  their  eyes.  You  see, 
they  have  quite  made  up  their  minds  that  this  fort  will  not  be 
attacked  again,  and  so  are  less  inclined  to  be  vigilant  than 
they  would  be,  did  they  think  that  an  attack  was  impending." 

Now  that  there  was  reason  to  believe  that  St.  Nicholas 
might  again  be  attacked,  Gervaise  was  frequently  there  with 
orders  or  inquiries  from  the  grand  master.  A  number  of  ves- 
sels in  the  harbour  were  fitted  up  as  fire-ships,  so  as  to  be  in 
readiness  when  the  attack  came.  He  was  about  to  start  early 
one  morning  when  he  saw  Roger  Jervis  coming  up  with  a 
heavy  anchor  on  his  shoulder. 

"  Why,  what  are  you  bringing  that  up  here  for  ?  "  he  asked. 
' '  Have  you  been  diving ;  for  I  see  your  clothes  are  dripping 
with  water  ?  ' ' 

"Ay,  ay,  sir,  I  have  been  in  the  water,  and  that  Italian 
commander  told  me  to  come  straight  up  here  to  tell  the  grand 
master  all  about  the  story  ;  and  right  glad  am  I  to  have  met 
you,  for  I  should  have  made  but  a  poor  fist  of  it  alone ;  I  don't 
know  more  of  their  lingo  than  just  to  talk  a  few  words  of  it." 

"  Then  you  had  better  tell  me  the  story  before  I  take  you 
in." 

"Well,  it  was  like  this,  Sir  Knight:  I  had  Hudson  and 
Jeffreys  posted  upon  the  wall,  and  I  thought  I  would  take  a 
turn  down  on  the  rocks,  for  it  was  a  dark  night,  and  you  can 
see  much  farther  when  you  are  by  the  edge  of  the  water  than 
you  can  when  you  are  at  the  mast-head.  I  sat  there  for  an 


374  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

hour,  and  was  thinking  that  it  was  about  time  to  go  up  and 
turn  out  the  other  watch,  when  I  saw  something  dark  upon 
the  water.  It  wasn't  a  ship,  that  was  certain,  and  if  it  was  a 
boat  there  wasn't  any  one  in  it;  but  it  was  too  dark  to  make 
quite  sure  what  it  was.  I  watched  it  for  a  time,  though  I  did 
not  think  much  of  the  thing,  taking  it  for  a  boat  that  had  got 
adrift,  or  maybe  a  barrel  from  one  of  the  Turkish  ships. 
Presently  I  made  out  that  it  was  a  good  bit  nearer  than  when 
I  first  saw  it. 

"  That  puzzled  me.  There  is  no  tide  to  speak  of  in  these 
seas,  and  there  was  no  wind  moving  about.  I  could  make  out 
now  that  it  was  a  boat,  though  a  very  small  one,  but  certainly 
there  was  no  one  rowing  it.  It  looked  a  very  strange  craft, 
and  as  I  saw  by  the  way  it  was  bearing  that  it  would  come 
ashore  about  five  or  six  fathoms  from  where  I  was  sitting,  I 
slid  quietly  off  the  rock,  put  my  sword  down  by  me  handy  for 
action,  and  waited.  Presently  the  boat  came  up  alongside  the 
rock,  and  a  fellow  stood  up  from  behind  the  stern.  I  was 
glad  to  see  him,  for  I  had  begun  to  think  that  there  was  witch- 
craft in  the  thing  moving  along  by  itself;  but  I  can  tell  you 
I  was  savage  with  myself  for  not  having  guessed  there  was  a 
man  swimming  behind  and  pushing  it  on. 

"  He  stooped  over  the  boat,  and  took  something  heavy  out ; 
then  he  felt  about  among  the  rocks  under  the  water,  and  then 
laid  the  thing  down  there,  and  seemed  to  me  to  be  settling  it 
firm.  I  had  half  a  mind  to  jump  up  and  let  fly  at  him,  but 
then  I  thought  it  would  be  better  to  let  him  finish  what  he  was 
doing,  and  go  off  with  the  idea  that  no  one  had  seen  him. 
So  I  kept  hid  until  he  started  again.  He  waded  a  short  way 
before  he  had  to  swim,  and  I  could  see  that  as  he  went  he  was 
paying  out  a  rope  over  the  stern.  It  was  clear  enough  now 
what  he  had  been  up  to  :  he  had  been  fixing  an  anchor. 
What  he  did  it  for,  or  what  use  it  could  be  to  him,  I  could 
not  say,  but  it  was  certain  that  he  would  not  take  all  that 
trouble,  with  the  chance  of  being  knocked  on  the  head,  for 


THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH          375 

nothing ;  so  I  waited  for  a  bit  till  he  had  got  out  of  sight,  and 
over  to  the  other  side  of  the  port. 

"  Then  I  got  up  and  felt  about,  and,  chancing  to  get  my 
foot  under  the  rope,  went  right  over  into  the  water.  After 
that  you  may  guess  I  was  not  long  in  finding  the  anchor.  I 
unknotted  the  rope  from  it  and  carried  it  ashore ;  then  it 
struck  me  that  the  Turks  might  take  it  into  their  heads  to  give 
a  pull  on  it  in  the  morning,  and  if  they  did,  they  would  find 
out  that  their  game,  whatever  it  was,  had  been  found  out ;  so 

I  got  hold  of  a  stone  of  about  twenty  pound  weight,  and  fast- 
ened the  rope's  end  round  it.     That  was  enough  to  prevent 
the  rope  getting  slack  and  make  them  think  that  it  was  still 
fast  to  the  anchor ;  but,  of  course,  if  they  pulled  hard  on  it  it 
would  come  home  directly.     I  went  and  reported  the  matter 
the  first  thing  this  morning  to  the  governor.     He  seemed  to 
think  that  it  was  important,  and  told  me  to  bring  the  anchor 
up  to  the  grand  master,  who  would  get  one  of  the  English 
knights  to  find  out  all  about  it ;  for  he  could  not  make  out 
much  of  what  I  said. ' ' 

"  It  is  very  important,"  Gervaise  said,  "and  you  behaved 
very  wisely  in  the  matter,  and  have  rendered  a  great  service 
by  your  discovery.  I  will  take  you  in  at  once  to  the  grand 
master. ' ' 

Still  bearing  the  anchor,  the  sailor  followed  Gervaise  into 
an  apartment  where  D'Aubusson  was  taking  council  with  some 
of  the  senior  knights. 

"  Pardon  my  interrupting  your  Highness,"  Gervaise  said  ; 

II  but  the  matter  is  so  important  that  I  knew  you  would  listen 
to  it,  however  occupied  you  were."     And  he  then  repeated 
the  narrative  of  the  sailor's  discovery. 

"  This  is  indeed  of  the  highest  importance,"  D'Aubusson 
said,  "  and  the  knowledge  that  it  gives  us  may  enable  us  to  de- 
feat an  attempt,  that  might  otherwise  have  proved  our  ruin. 
You  see,  knights,  it  solves  the  question  that  we  were  just  dis- 
cussing. We  agreed  that  this  long  floating  bridge  that  they 


376  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

have  been  constructing,  was  intended  to  enable  them  to  cross 
the  outer  port  and  again  attack  St.  Nicholas  ;  and  yet  it  seemed 
to  us  that  even  by  night  our  batteries  would  be  able  to  keep  up 
such  a  fire  on  the  boats,  towing  the  head  of  the  bridge  across, 
as  to  render  it  well-nigh  impossible  for  them  to  get  it  over. 
Now  you  see  what  their  plan  is.  With  the  aid  of  this  rope,  the 
end  of  which  they  think  is  firmly  fixed  on  our  side,  they  mean 
to  haal  the  bridge  across,  and  that  so  silently  that  they  hope  to 
be  upon  us  almost  before  we  have  time  to  don  our  armour. 
We  shall  now  be  fully  prepared,  and  need  have  no  fear  of  the 
result." 

There  could  now  be  little  doubt  that  the  attack  would  be 
made  without  loss  of  time,  especially  as  the  Turks  believed 
that  they  could  get  their  bridge  across  unseen.  The  fire-ships 
— which  were  altogether  more  formidable  than  those  Gervaise 
had  improvised — were  ordered  to  be  made  ready  for  action. 
This  being  arranged,  the  admiral  left  the  council  at  once,  that 
no  time  should  be  lost  in  getting  them  in  readiness.  D' Aubus- 
son  then  turned  to  the  English  sailor. 

"  You  have  rendered  us  a  great  service  indeed  by  your 
vigilance,  and  showed  great  prudence  by  allowing  the  Turk 
to  believe  that  he  had  accomplished  his  mission  unsuspected. 
Had  he  thought  he  had  been  observed,  some  other  plan  would 
have  been  adopted.  For  so  great  a  service  it  is  meet  that  a 
great  reward  should  be  given. ' ' 

He  then  took  a  bag  from  the  hands  of  one  of  his  secretaries, 
whom  he  had  sent  to  fetch  it,  while  they  were  discussing  the 
matter  of  the  fire-ships. 

"  Here  are  two  hundred  golden  crowns,"  he  added,  hand- 
ing the  bag  to  the  seaman.  "  With  these  you  can  either  settle 
on  shore,  or  can  build  a  stout  ship  and  pursue  your  calling. 
Should  you  do  so,  call  her  the  St.  Nicholas,  in  remembrance 
of  the  gratitude  of  the  Order  of  St.  John  for  your  having  saved 
that  fort  from  the  Turks. ' ' 

Astonished  and  delighted  at  the  reward,  which  represented 


THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH          377 

a  very  large  sum  in  those  days,  the  sailor  stammered  his 
thanks,  and  added,  "  I  hope  to-night  that  if  I  again  have 
charge  of  a  fire-ship,  I  may  be  able  to  do  more  to  prove  to 
your  Highness  how  grateful  I  am  for  the  gift." 

Throughout  the  day  preparations  for  the  defence  of  St. 
Nicholas  went  on  unceasingly.  Gangs  of  men,  as  usual, 
worked  in  the  breach  ;  but,  as  it  was  deemed  advisable  that 
there  should  be  no  outward  show  of  activity  that  would  lead 
the  Turks  to  suspect  that  their  design  had  been  discovered, 
neither  reinforcements  of  men  nor  munitions  were  sent  along 
the  mole ;  everything  being  taken  out  by  boats,  which,  rowing 
closely  along  under  the  wall,  were  hidden  from  the  view  of  the 
Turks.  Barrels  of  Greek  fire  and  pitch,  cauldrons  for  heating 
the  latter,  a  store  of  firewood,  great  balls  of  cotton  steeped  in 
oil  and  turpentine,  sheaves  of  darts,  spikes  on  short  staves, 
that  were,  after  darkness  fell,  to  be  thrust  in  among  the  fallen 
masonry  to  form  a  chevaux-de-frise — these,  and  all  other 
matters  that  the  ingenuity  of  the  defenders  could  suggest,  were 
landed  at  the  water-gate  of  the  fort,  while  the  garrison  was 
strengthened  by  the  addition  of  a  large  number  of  knights. 
Stores  of  ammunition  were  collected  in  readiness  at  all  the 
batteries  that  commanded  the  mouth  of  the  outer  port,  and  by 
sunset  D'Aubusson  felt  that  everything  that  was  possible  had 
been  done  to  meet  the  impending  storm. 

At  midnight  the  Turkish  preparations  were  complete.  The 
attack  by  the  bridge  was  to  be  assisted  by  a  large  number  of 
boats  and  other  craft,  and  many  armed  galleys  were  also 
brought  up  to  destroy  or  tow  away  the  defenders'  fire-ships. 
Paleologus  himself  was  down  by  the  shore  directing  the  prep- 
arations. Some  of  his  best  troops  were  placed  upon  the 
floating  bridge,  and,  when  all  was  ready,  the  order  was  given 
to  pull  upon  the  rope.  No  sooner,  however,  did  the  strain 
come  upon  it  than  there  was  a  jerk,  the  rope  slackened,  and 
it  was  at  once  evident  that  the  anchor  had  been  discovered 
and  the  well-laid  plan  disconcerted.  Paleologus  was  furious, 


378  A   KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

but,  believing  that  the  attack  he  had  arranged  would  still  be 
irresistible,  he  ordered  a  number  of  boats  to  take  the  bridge  in 
to\v,  while  a  still  larger  force  was  to  make  a  direct  attack  upon 
the  breach.  The  movement  was  to  be  conducted  as  silently 
as  possible  until  it  was  discovered,  and  then  a  dash  forward 
was  to  be  made. 

It  was  two  o'clock  before  the  fresh  arrangements  were  com- 
pleted and  the  boats  put  out.  They  had  gone  but  a  short  dis- 
tance when  the  anxious  watchers  in  St.  Nicholas  learnt  by  the 
dull,  confused  sound  that  came  across  the  water,  that  the  at- 
tack was,  in  spite  of  the  failure  of  the  plan  to  take  the  bridge 
silently  across,  to  be  persevered  in.  A  cannon  was  at  once 
fired  to  give  notice  to  the  other  batteries  to  be  in  readiness, 
and  as  soon  as  the  dark  mass  of  boats  was  made  out  the  guns 
of  the  fort  opened  a  destructive  fire  upon  them,  and  a  moment 
later  were  seconded  by  those  from  the  fortress ;  these,  how- 
ever, were  at  present  being  fired  almost  at  random,  as  the  Turk- 
ish boats  could  not  be  made  out  at  that  distance.  Now  that 
all  need  for  concealment  was  at  an  end,  the  Turkish  war-cry 
rose  shrilly  in  the  air,  and  the  boatmen  bent  to  their  oars. 
The  great  cannon  at  St.  Anthony's  Church  hurled  their  tre- 
mendous missiles  at  the  tower,  seconded  by  the  fire  of  a  num- 
ber of  other  pieces  that  had  in  the  darkness  been  brought  down 
almost  to  the  water's  edge. 

As  before,  the  boats  swept  up  to  the  foot  of  the  breach,  the 
Turks  leaped  ^>ut,  and,  undismayed  by  the  storm  of  shot, 
climbed  up  to  the  assault.  The  short  ladders  that  they  had 
brought  with  them  enabled  them  to  surmount  the  escarpments 
so  laboriously  made,  and  with  loud  shouts  of  "  Allah  !  "  they 
flung  themselves  upon  the  defenders  on  the  crest  of  the  breach. 
Here  they  were  met  by  a  line  even  more  difficult  to  break 
through  than  before.  The  knights  were  ranged  three  deep ; 
those  in  the  front  were  armed  with  swords  and  battle-axes, 
while  those  in  the  other  two  lines  thrust  their  spears  out  be- 
tween the  swordsmen,  covering  them  with  a  hedge  of  steel 


THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH          379 

points.  Others  in  the  rear  brought  up  buckets  of  blazing 
pitch  and  Greek  fire,  and,  advancing  through  gaps  left  for  the 
purpose,  hurled  the  buckets  down  into  the  struggling  mass  on 
the  slope.  There  the  fire  not  only  carried  death  among  the 
assailants,  but  the  lurid  flames  enabled  the  batteries  to  direct 
their  shot  with  terrible  effect  upon  the  breach,  the  crowded 
boats  at  its  foot,  and  the  bridge  which  was,  with  immense 
labour,  presently  got  into  position. 

It  was  not  long  before  fresh  light  was  thrown  upon  the 
scene,  as  the  fire-ships,  issuing  out  from  the  inner  harbour, 
burst  into  columns  of  flame,  and,  towed  by  boats,  came  into 
action.  They  were  convoyed  by  the  two  galleys,  each  with 
a  full  complement  of  knights,  and  these  soon  became  engaged 
in  a  fierce  fight  with  the  Turkish  vessels  that  bore  down  to  ar- 
rest the  course  of  the  fire-ships.  The  scene  was  indeed  a  ter- 
rible one,  the  roar  of  cannon,  the  shouts  of  the  combatants, 
the  screams  of  the  poor  wretches  upon  whom  the  terrible 
Greek  fire  fell,  the  clash  of  arms  and  the  shouts  and  cries  of 
the  Turks  as  they  pressed  across  the  bridge,  united  in  a  din 
that  thrilled  with  horror  the  spectators,  both  in  the  city  and 
on  St.  Stephen's  Hill. 

Several  of  the  Turkish  galleys,  in  their  efforts  to  arrest  the 
approach  of  the  fire-ships  towards  the  bridge,  became  them- 
selves involved  in  the  flames ;  but  they  were  so  far  successful 
that  when  daylight  broke  the  bridge  was  still  intact  and  the 
combat  at  the  breach  continued  to  rage  with  determination 
and  fury  on  both  sides.  The  Turks  there  were  led  by  a  brave 
young  prince  named  Ibrahim,  a  near  relative  of  the  sultan, 
with  whom  he  was  a  great  favourite,  and  he  was  ever  in  the 
front  line  of  the  assailants,  his  splendid  bravery  animating  the 
soldiers  to  continue  their  efforts.  As  the  daylight  broadened 
out,  however,  the  light  enabled  the  Christian  gunners  to  aim 
with  far  greater  accuracy  than  had  before  been  possible,  and, 
concentrating  their  fire  upon  the  bridge,  across  which  rein- 
forcements continued  to  press  to  the  support  of  the  assailants, 


380  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

they  succeeded  in  sinking  so  many  of  the  boats  that  it  was  no 
longer  passable. 

Next  they  turned  their  fire  upon  the  Turkish  galleys,  four 
of  which  they  sank.  Shortly  afterwards,  a  ball  struck  the  gal- 
lant young  leader  of  the  Turks,  who,  although  previously  sev- 
eral times  wounded,  had  continued  to  fight  in  the  front  line. 
He  fell  dead,  and  his  followers,  disheartened  by  his  fall  and  by 
the  destruction  of  the  bridge,  at  once  abandoned  their  efforts, 
and  rushed  down  to  the  foot  of  the  breach.  The  terrible 
scene  enacted  at  the  repulse  of  the  previous  attack  was  now  re- 
peated. The  concentrated  fire  of  the  guns  of  the  defenders 
carried  destruction  into  the  crowded  mass.  Some  gained  the 
boats  that  still  remained  uninjured,  and  rowed  for  the  oppo- 
site shore;  the  greater  number  rushed  into  the  water  and 
strove  to  recross  it  either  by  swimming  or  by  the  aid  of  the 
debris  of  the  shattered  boats.  Their  total  loss  was  greater  even 
than  that  suffered  by  them  in  the  first  attack,  between  two  and 
three  thousand  being  either  killed  or  drowned,  among  them  a 
number  of  their  best  officers.  The  amount  of  spoil,  in  the 
form  of  rich  jewels  and  costly  gold  ornaments,  found  on  the 
bodies  of  the  dead  piled  on  the  breach,  was  very  great. 

For  three  days  after  this  terrible  repulse  the  Turks  were 
inactive,  the  pasha  remaining  shut  up  in  his  tent,  refusing  to 
see  any  one,  or  to  issue  orders.  At  the  end  of  that  time  he 
roused  himself  from  his  stupor  of  grief  and  disappointment, 
and,  abandoning  the  idea  of  any  further  attack  upon  the  point 
that  had  cost  him  so  dearly,  he  ordered  the  troops  to  move 
round  and  renew  the  attack  upon  the  wall  in  front  of  the  Jews' 
quarter,  and  commence  the  construction  of  a  battery  on  the 
edge  of  the  great  ditch  facing  the  retrenchment  behind  the 
breach  before  effected.  The  knights  of  Italy  and  Spain  de- 
termined to  seize  the  opportunity  of  retrieving  the  disgrace 
that  had  fallen  upon  them.  At  night  they  descended  into  the 
deep  cutting,  carrying  across  their  ladders,  and,  silently  mount- 
ing the  opposite  side,  rushed  with  loud  shouts  into  the  unfin- 


THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH          381 

ished  battery.  The  Turks  there,  taken  utterly  by  surprise, 
made  but  a  slight  resistance ;  a  few  were  immediately  cut 
down,  and  the  rest  fled  panic-stricken. 

The  knights  at  once  set  the  woodwork  of  the  battery  on  fire, 
hurled  the  guns  down  into  the  ditch,  and  then  returned  tri- 
umphantly into  the  town,  the  dashing  feat  completely  rein- 
stating them  in  the  good  opinion  of  the  grand  master  and  their 
comrades. 

The  incident  showed  the  pasha  that  he  must  neglect  no  pre- 
cautions, and,  accordingly,  he  commenced  his  works  at  a  dis- 
tance from  the  walls,  and  pushed  his  approaches  regularly  for- 
ward until  he  again  established  a  battery  on  the  site  of  that 
from  which  his  troops  had  been  so  unceremoniously  ejected. 
While  forming  the  approaches,  the  workmen  had  been  con- 
stantly harassed  by  the  fire  from  the  guns  on  the  walls,  suffer- 
ing considerable  loss  of  life ;  but  their  numerical  superiority 
was  so  vast  that  the  loss  in  no  way  affected  the  plans  of  the 
pasha. 

As  soon  as  the  battery  was  completed,  gangs  of  men,  accus- 
tomed to  mining  operations,  set  to  work  in  its  rear  to  drive 
sloping  passages  downwards,  opening  into  the  face  of  the  great 
cutting,  and  through  these  vast  quantities  of  earth  and  stones 
were  poured,  so  as  to  afford  a  passage  across  it,  the  depth 
being  largely  diminished  by  the  great  pile  of  rubbish  that  had 
already  fallen  from  the  breached  wall.  This  novel  mode  of 
attack  was  altogether  unexpected.  The  knights  had  regarded 
the  fosse  that  had  been  cut  at  such  an  enormous  expenditure 
of  labour  as  forming  an  altogether  impassable  obstruction,  and 
were  dismayed  at  seeing  the  progress  made  in  filling  it  up. 
D'Aubusson  himself,  full  of  resources  as  he  was,  saw  that  the 
defence  was  seriously  threatened,  unless  some  plan  of  meeting 
this  unexpected  danger  could  be  devised. 

He  consulted  Maitre  Georges ;  but  the  latter  could  make  no 
suggestion  ;  his  only  advice  being  the  erection  of  a  battery  at 
a  spot  where  it  was  almost  self-evident  that  it  could  be  of  no 


382  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

utility  whatever.  Other  circumstances  combined  to  render 
the  suspicions  D'Aubusson  had  entertained  of  the  good  faith 
of  the  renegade  almost  a  certainty.  Georges  was  seized,  tried, 
and  put  to  torture,  and  under  this  owned  that  he  had  been 
sent  into  the  town  for  the  purpose  of  betraying  it ;  and  he  was, 
the  same  day,  hung  in  the  great  square.  His  guilt  must  al- 
ways be  considered  as  uncertain.  There  was  no  proof  against 
him,  save  his  own  confession ;  and  a  confession  extorted  by 
torture  is  of  no  value  whatever.  There  are  certainly  many 
good  grounds  for  suspicion,  but  it  is  possible  that  Georges 
really  repented  his  apostacy,  and  acted  in  good  faith  in  desert- 
ing the  standard  of  Paleologus.  He  was  undoubtedly  a  man  of 
altogether  exceptional  ability  and  acquirements,  and  even  the 
knights  who  have  written  accounts  of  the  siege  do  justice  to  the 
fascination  of  his  manner  and  the  charm  of  his  conversation. 

D'Aubusson  now  set  to  work  in  another  direction  to  coun- 
teract the  efforts  of  the  Turks.  He  erected  an  immense  wood- 
en catapult,  which  threw  huge  pieces  of  rock  into  the  midst  of 
the  Turkish  works,  crushing  down  the  wooden  screens  erected 
to  hide  their  approaches,  breaking  in  the  covered  ways,  and 
causing  great  loss  of  life  among  the  besiegers.  At  the  same 
time  galleries  were  driven  below  the  breach,  opening  into  the 
ditch,  where  their  exits  were  concealed  by  masses  of  rubbish. 
Through  these  strong  working  parties  issued  out  at  night,  and 
carried  away  up  the  passages  the  rocks  and  other  materials  that 
the  Turks  had,'during  the  day,  brought,  with  immense  labour, 
from  a  distance  to  the  shoot.  The  materials  so  carried  away 
were  piled  up  behind  the  retrenchment,  greatly  adding  to  its 
thickness  and  strength. 

For  some  days  the  Turks  observed,  to  their  astonishment, 
that  the  road  they  were  constructing  across  the  ditch  was  di- 
minishing instead  of  increasing  in  bulk,  and  at  length  it  became 
so  evident  that  the  garrison  were  in  some  way  removing  the 
materials,  that  the  pasha  determined  to  deliver  the  assault  be- 
fore the  heap  was  so  far  diminished  as  to  become  impassable.  , 


THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH  383 

His  former  defeats  had,  however,  taught  him  that  success  could 
not  be  always  calculated  upon,  however  good  its  prospect  might 
appear ;  and  although  he  had  no  real  hope  that  the  defenders 
would  yield,  he  sent  a  formal  summons  for  them  to  do  so.  This 
was  refused  with  disdain,  and  preparations  were  at  once  made 
for  the  assault. 

The  pasha  promised  to  his  soldiers  the  sack  of  the  town  and 
all  the  booty  captured,  and  so  assured  were  they  of  success  that 
sacks  were  made  to  carry  off  the  plunder.  Stakes,  on  which  the 
knights,  when  taken  prisoners,  were  to  be  impaled,  were  pre- 
pared and  sharpened,  and  each  soldier  carried  a  coil  of  rope 
with  which  to  secure  his  captive. 

Before  ordering  the  assault,  the  way  was  prepared  for  it  by  a 
terrible  fire  from  every  siege  gun  of  the  Turks.  This  was  kept 
up  for  twenty-four  hours,  and  so  tremendous  was  the  effect  that 
the  knights  were  unable  to  remain  on  the  ramparts.  The  Turk- 
ish troops  moved  into  position  for  attack,  their  movements  be- 
ing covered  by  the  roar  of  the  guns,  and  soon  after  sunrise  on 
the  22nd  of  July  the  signal  was  given,  and  at  a  number  of  dif- 
ferent points  the  Turks  rushed  to  the  assault.  All  these  attacks, 
save  that  on  the  breach,  were  merely  feints,  to  distract  the  at- 
tention of  the  garrison,  and  to  add  to  the  confusion  caused  by 
this  sudden  and  unexpected  onslaught.  The  pasha's  plans  were 
well  designed  and  carried  out ;  the  knights,  unable  to  keep  their 
places  on  the  ramparts  under  the  storm  of  missiles,  had  retired 
to  shelter  behind  the  walls.  There  was  no  thought  of  an  in- 
stant assault,  as  they  considered  that  this  would  not  be  deliv- 
ered until  the  new  wall  behind  the  breach  had  been  demolished. 

Consequently,  the  rush  of  the  Turks  found  the  defenders 
altogether  unprepared.  Swarming  across  the  mass  of  debris  in 
the  ditch,  they  ascended  the  breach  without  opposition,  and 
their  scaling  ladders  were  placed  against  the  new  wall  be- 
fore the  knights  could  hurry  up  to  its  defence.  Even  before 
the  alarm  was  given  in  the  town,  the  Turkish  standard  was 
waving  on  the  parapet,  and  the  Moslems  were  crowding  on  to 


384  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

the  wall  in  vast  numbers.  The  suddenness  of  the  attack,  the 
complete  surprise,  the  sound  of  battle  at  various  points  around 
the  walls,  caused  for  a  time  confusion  and  dismay  among  the 
knights  charged  with  the  defence  of  the  wall  facing  the  breach. 
Roused  by  the  uproar,  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  rushed  up 
to  their  roofs  to  ascertain  what  was  happening,  and  their  cries 
of  wild  terror  and  alarm  at  seeing  the  Turkish  banner  on  the 
walls  added  to  the  confusion.  D'Aubusson  sprang  up  from 
the  couch,  on  which  he  had  thrown  himself  in  full  armour,  at 
the  first  sound  of  the  alarm,  and,  sending  off  messages  to  all 
the  auberges  to  summon  every  man  to  the  defence,  ran  down 
into  the  town,  followed  by  a  small  party  of  knights. 

Rushing  through  the  streets,  now  filled  with  half-dressed 
people  wild  with  terror,  he  reached  the  foot  of  the  wall,  whose 
summit  was  crowded  with  the  enemy,  and  saw  in  an  instant  that 
all  was  lost  unless  they  could  be  driven  thence  without  delay. 
The  effect  of  his  presence  was  instantaneous.  The  knights, 
hitherto  confused  and  dismayed,  rallied  at  once,  and  prepared 
for  the  desperate  undertaking.  The  bank  on  the  inside  was 
almost  perpendicular,  and  those  charged  with  its  defence  had 
used  two  or  three  ladders  for  ascending  to  the  rampart.  These 
were  at  once  seized  and  planted  against  the  wall. 

The  position  of  the  contending  parties  was  now  reversed ; 
the  Christians  were  the  assailants,  the  Turks  the  defenders. 
D'Aubusson  himself  was  the  first  to  ascend.  Covering  his 
head  with  his  shield,  he  mounted  the  rampart ;  but  ere  he 
could  gain  a  footing  on  the  top  he  was  severely  wounded  and 
hurled  backwards.  Again  he  made  the  attempt,  but  was  again 
wounded  and  thrown  down.  Once  more  he  mounted,  and  this 
time  made  good  his  footing.  A  moment  later,  Gervaise,  who 
had  accompanied  him  from  the  palace,  stood  beside  him.  Ani- 
mated with  the  same  spirit  as  his  leader,  he  threw  himself  reck- 
lessly against  the  Turks,  using  a  short,  heavy  mace,  which  in  a 
melee  was  far  more  useful  than  the  long  sword.  Scimitars 
clashed  upon  his  helmet  and  armour ;  but  at  every  blow  he 


THE  STRUGGLE  AT  THE  BREACH  385 

struck  a  Turk  fell,  and  for  each  foot  he  gained  a  knight  sprang 
on  to  the  wall  and  joined  him.  Each  moment  their  number 
increased,  and  the  war-cry  of  the  Order  rose  louder  and  fiercer 
above  the  din.  The  very  number  of  the  Turks  told  against 
them.  Crowded  together  as  they  were  they  could  not  use  their 
weapons  effectually,  and,  pressing  fiercely  upon  them,  the 
knights  drove  them  back  along  the  wall  on  either  hand,  hurl- 
ing them  down  into  the  street  or  over  the  rampart. 

On  so  narrow  a  field  of  battle  the  advantage  was  all  on  the 
side  of  the  knights,  whose  superior  height  and  strength,  and 
the  protection  afforded  by  their  armour,  rendered  them  almost 
invincible,  nerved  as  they  were  with  fury  at  the  surprise  that 
had  overtaken  them,  and  the  knowledge  that  the  fate  of  the 
city  depended  upon  their  efforts.  After  a  quarter  of  an  hour's 
desperate  conflict  the  Turks  were  driven  down  the  partial 
breach  effected  in  the  wall  by  the  last  bombardment,  and  the 
Christians  were  again  the  masters  of  their  ramparts.  Paleo- 
logus,  however,  hurried  up  reinforcements,  headed  by  a  band 
of  janissaries,  whose  valour  had  decided  many  an  obstinate  con- 
flict. Before  ordering  them  to  advance,  he  gave  instructions 
to  a  company  of  men  of  approved  valour  to  devote  all  their 
efforts  to  attacking  D'Aubusson  himself,  whose  mantle  and 
rich  armour  rendered  him  a  conspicuous  object  among  the 
defenders  of  the  breach.  Advancing  to  the  attack,  the  janis- 
saries burst  through  the  mass  of  Turks  still  continuing  the 
conflict,  and  rushed  up  the  breach.  Then  the  chosen  band, 
separating  from  the  rest,  flung  themselves  upon  the  grand  mas- 
ter, the  suddenness  and  fury  of  their  attack  isolating  him  and 
Gervaise  from  the  knights  around. 

Surrounded  as  he  was  by  foes,  already  suffering  from  two 
severe  wounds  and  shaken  by  his  falls  from  the  ladder,  the 
grand  master  yet  made  a  valiant  defence  in  front,  while  Ger- 
vaise, hurling  his  mace  into  the  face  of  one  of  his  assailants,  and 
drawing  his  two-handed  sword,  covered  him  from  the  attack 
from  behind.  D'Aubusson  received  two  more  severe  wounds, 


386  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

but  still  fought  on.  Gervaise,  while  in  the  act  of  cutting 
down  an  assailant,  heard  a  shout  of  triumph  from  behind,  and, 
looking  round,  he  saw  the  grand  master  sinking  to  the  ground 
from  another  wound.  With  a  cry  of  grief  and  fury  Gervaise 
sprang  to  him,  receiving  as  he  did  so  several  blows  on  his  ar- 
mour and  shield  intended  for  the  fallen  knight,  and,  standing 
across  him,  showered  his  blows  with  such  strength  and  swift- 
ness that  the  janissaries  shrank  back  before  the  sweep  of  the 
flashing  steel.  More  than  one  who  tried  to  spring  into  close 
quarters  fell  cleft  to  the  chin,  and,  ere  his  assailants  could 
combine  for  a  general  rush,  a  body  of  knights,  who  had  just 
beaten  off  their  assailants,  fell  upon  the  ranks  of  the  janissaries 
with  a  force  and  fury  there  was  no  withstanding,  and  the 
chosen  troops  of  the  sultan  for  the  first  time  broke  and  fled. 

Excited  almost  to  madness  by  the  sight  of  their  beloved 
master  stretched  bleeding  on  the  ground,  the  knights  dashed 
down  the  breach  in  eager  pursuit.  This  action  was  decisive 
of  the  fate  of  the  struggle.  The  panic  among  the  janissaries  at 
once  spread,  and  the  main  body  of  troops,  who  had  hitherto 
valiantly  striven  to  regain  the  advantage  snatched  from  them, 
now  lost  heart  and  fled  in  confusion.  But  their  escape  was  barred 
by  the  great  body  of  reinforcements  pressing  forward  across  the 
heap  of  rubbish  that  formed  the  breach  over  the  deep  ditch. 
Maddened  by  fear,  the  fugitives  strove  to  cut  a  way  through 
their  friends.  The  whole  of  the  defenders  of  the  breach  now 
fell  upon  the  rear  of  the  struggling  mass,  hewing  them  down 
almost  without  resistance,  while  the  cannon  from  the  walls  and 
towers  kept  up  an  unceasing  fire  until  the  last  survivors  of  what 
had  become  a  massacre,  succeeded  in  gaining  their  works  be- 
yond the  ditch,  and  fled  to  their  camp. 

From  every  gateway  and  postern  the  knights  now  poured 
out,  and,  gathering  together,  advanced  to  the  attack  of  St. 
Stephen's  Hill.  They  met  with  but  a  faint  resistance.  The 
greater  portion  of  the  disorganised  troops  had  made  no  pause  at 
their  camp,  but  had  continued  their  headlong  flight  to  the 


SIR    GERVAISE   FINDS    HIMSELF    LYING   IN   THE   HOSPITAL   OF   THE   ORDER. 


THE    REWARD    OF    VALOUR  387 

harbour,  where  their  ships  were  moored,  Paleologus  himself, 
heart-broken  and  despairing  at  his  failure,  sharing  their  flight. 
The  camp,  with  all  its  rich  booty  and  the  great  banner  of  the 
pasha,  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  victors,  who,  satisfied  with 
their  success,  and  exhausted  by  their  efforts,  made  no  attempt 
to  follow  the  flying  foe,  or  to  hinder  their  embarkation ;  for 
even  now  the  Turks,  enormously  outnumbering  them  as  they 
did,  might  be  driven  by  despair  to  a  resistance  so  desperate  as 
once  again  to  turn  the  tide  of  victory. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

THE  REWARD  OF  VALOUR 

GERVAISE  knew  nothing  at  the  time  of  the  final  result  of 
the  battle,  for  as  soon  as  the  knights  had  burst  through 
the  circle  of  his  opponents,  he  sank  insensible  on  the  body  of 
the  grand  master.  When  he  came  to  himself,  he  was  lying  on 
a  bed  in  the  hospital  of  the  Order.  As  soon  as  he  moved,  Ralph 
Harcourt,  who  was,  with  other  knights,  occupied  in  tending 
the  wounded,  came  to  his  bedside.  "  Thank  God  that  you 
are  conscious  again,  Gervaise  !  They  told  me  that  it  was  but 
faintness  and  loss  of  blood,  and  that  none  of  your  wounds  were 
likely  to  prove  mortal,  and  for  the  last  twelve  hours  they  have 
declared  that  you  were  asleep  :  but  you  looked  so  white  that  I 
could  not  but  fear  you  would  never  wake  again." 

' '  How  is  the  grand  master  ?  ' '   Gervaise  asked  eagerly. 

Ralph  shook  his  head. 

"  He  is  wounded  sorely,  Gervaise,  and  the  leech  declares 
that  one  at  least  of  his  wounds  is  mortal ;  still,  I  cannot  bring 
myself  to  believe  that  so  great  a  hero  will  be  taken  away  in  the 
moment  of  victory,  after  having  done  such  marvels  for  the 
cause  not  only  of  the  Order,  but  of  all  Christendom." 


388  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE    WHITE    CROSS 

"  Then  you  beat  them  back  again  from  the  breach  ? ' '  Ger- 
vaise  said. 

"  That  was  not  all.  They  were  in  such  confusion  that  we 
sallied  out,  captured  their  camp,  with  the  pasha's  banner  and 
an  enormous  quantity  of  spoil,  and  pursued  them  to  their  har- 
bour. Then  we  halted,  fearing  that  they  might  in  their  des- 
peration turn  upon  us,  and,  terribly  weakened  as  we  were  by 
our  losses,  have  again  snatched  the  victory  from  our  grasp. 
So  we  let  them  go  on  board  their  ships  without  interference, 
and  this  morning  there  is  not  a  Turkish  sail  in  sight.  The  in- 
habitants are  well-nigh  mad  with  joy.  But  elated  as  we  are 
at  our  success,  our  gladness  is  sorely  damped  by  the  state  of 
the  grand  master,  and  the  loss  of  so  many  of  our  comrades, 
though,  indeed,  our  langue  has  suffered  less  than  any  of  the 
others,  for  the  brunt  of  the  attacks  on  St.  Nicholas  and  the 
breach  did  not  fall  upon  us,  still  we  lost  heavily  when  at  last 
we  hurried  up  to  win  back  the  wall  from  them. ' ' 

"  Who  have  fallen  ?  "  Gervaise  asked. 

"  Among  the  principal  knights  are  Thomas  Ben,  Henry 
Haler,  Thomas  Ploniton,  John  Vaquelin,  Adam  Tedbond, 
Henry  Batasbi,  and  Henry  Anlui.  Marmaduke  Lumley  is 
dangerously  wounded.  Of  the  younger  knights,  some  fifteen 
have  been  killed,  and  among  them  your  old  enemy  Rivers.  He 
died  a  coward's  death,  the  only  one,  thank  God,  of  all  our  langue. 
When  the  fray  was  thickest  Sir  John  Boswell  marked  him 
crouching  behind  the  parapet.  He  seized  him  by  the  gorget,  and 
hauled  him  out,  but  his  knees  shook  so  that  he  could  scarcely 
walk,  and  would  have  slunk  back  when  released.  Sir  John 
raised  his  mace  to  slay  him  as  a  disgrace  to  the  Order  and  our 
langue,  when  a  ball  from  one  of  the  Turkish  cannon  cut  him 
well-nigh  in  half,  so  that  he  fell  by  the  hands  of  the  Turks, 
and  not  by  the  sword  of  one  of  the  Order  he  had  disgraced. 
Fortunately  none,  save  half-a-dozen  khights  of  our  langue,  saw 
the  affair,  and  you  may  be  sure  we  shall  say  nothing  about  it ; 
and  instead  of  Rivers'  name  going  down  to  infamy,  it  will 


THE    REWARD    OF    VALOUR 

appear  in  the  list  of  those  who  died  in  the  defence  of 
Rhodes." 

"May  God  assoil  his  soul!"  Gervaise  said  earnestly. 
"  'Tis  strange  that  one  of  gentle  blood  should  have  proved  a 
coward.  Had  he  remained  at  home,  and  turned  courtier,  in- 
stead of  entering  the  Order,  he  might  have  died  honoured, 
without  any  one  ever  coming  to  doubt  his  courage." 

"  He  would  have  turned  out  bad  whatever  he  was,"  Ralph 
said  contemptuously  ;  "for  my  part,  I  never  saw  a  single  good 
quality  in  him." 

Long  before  Gervaise  was  out  of  hospital,  the  glad  tidings 
that  D'Aubusson  would  recover,  in  spite  of  the  prognostica- 
tions of  the  leech,  spread  joy  through  the  city,  and  at  about 
the  same  time  that  Gervaise  left  the  hospital  the  grand  master 
was  able  to  sit  up.  Two  or  three  days  afterwards  he  sent  for 
Gervaise. 

"  I  owe  my  life  to  you,  Sir  Gervaise,"  he  said,  stretching 
out  his  thin,  white  hand  to  him  as  he  entered.  "  You  stood 
by  me  nobly  till  I  fell,  for,  though  unable  to  stand,  I  was  not 
unconscious,  and  saw  how  you  stood  above  me  and  kept  the 
swarming  Moslems  at  bay.  No  knight  throughout  •  the  siege 
has  rendered  such  great  service  as  you  have  done.  Since  I 
have  been  lying  unable  to  move,  I  have  thought  of  many 
things ;  among  them,  that  I  had  forgotten  to  give  you  the 
letters  and  presents  that  came  for  you  after  you  sailed  away. 
They  are  in  that  cabinet;  please  bring  them  to  me.  There," 
he  said,  as  Gervaise  brought  a  bulky  parcel  which  the  grand 
master  opened,  "  this  letter  is  from  the  Holy  Father  himself. 
That,  as  you  may  see  from  the  arms  on  the  seal,  is  from 
Florence.  The  others  are  from  Pisa,  Leghorn,  and  Naples. 
Rarely,  Sir  Gervaise,  has  any  potentate  or  knight  earned  the 
thanks  of  so  many  great  cities.  These  caskets  accompanied 
them.  Sit  down  and  read  your  letters.  They  must  be  copied 
in  our  records." 

Gervaise  first  opened  the  one  from  the  Pope.    It  was  written 


390  A   KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

by  his  own  hand,  and  expressed  his  thanks  as  a  temporal  sov- 
ereign for  the  great  benefit  to  the  commerce  of  his  subjects  by 
the  destruction  of  the  corsair  fleet,  and  as  the  head  of  the 
Christian  Church  for  the  blow  struck  at  the  Moslems.  The 
other  three  letters  were  alike  in  character,  expressing  the  grati- 
tude of  the  cities  for  their  deliverance  from  the  danger,  and  of 
their  admiration  for  the  action  by  which  a  fleet  was  destroyed 
with  a  single  galley.  Along  with  the  letter  from  Pisa  was  a 
casket  containing  a  heavy  gold  chain  set  with  gems.  Florence 
sent  a  casket  containing  a  document  bestowing  upon  him  the 
freedom  of  the  city,  and  an  order  upon  the  treasury  for  five 
thousand  ducats  that  had  been  voted  to  him  by  the  grand 
council  of  the  Republic;  while  Ferdinand,  King  of  Naples, 
bestowed  on  him  the  grand  cross  of  the  Order  of  St.  Michael. 
"  The  armour  I  had  hung  up  in  the  armoury,  where  it  has 
been  carefully  kept  clean.  I  guessed  what  it  was  by  the  weight 
of  the  case  when  it  came,  and  thought  it  best  to  open  it,  as  it 
might  have  got  spoilt  by  rust.  It  is  a  timely  gift,  Sir  Gervaise, 
for  the  siege  has  played  havoc  with  the  suit  Genoa  gave  you  ; 
it  is  sorely  battered,  dinted,  and  broken,  and,  although  you  can 
doubtless  get  it  repaired,  if  I  were  you  I  would  keep  it  in  its 
present  state  as  a  memorial — and  there  could  be  no  prouder 
one — of  the  part  you  bore  in  the  siege.  I  have  seen  Caretto 
this  morning.  He  sails  for  Genoa  to-morrow,  where  he  will,  I 
hope,  soon  recover  his  strength,  for  the  wounds  he  received  at 
St.  Nicholas  have  healed  but  slowly.  He  said," — and  a  mo- 
mentary smile  crossed  the  grand  master's  face — ' '  that  he  thought 
a  change  might  benefit  you  also,  for  he  was  sure  that  the  air 
here  had  scarce  recovered  from  the  taint  of  blood.  Therefore, 
here  is  a  paper  granting  you  three  months'  leave.  His  com- 
mandery  is  a  pleasant  one,  and  well  situated  on  the  slopes  of 
the  hills ;  and  the  fresh  air  will,  doubtless,  speedily  set  you  up. 
I  should  like  nothing  better  than  a  stay  there  myself,  but  there 
is  much  to  do  to  repair  the  damages  catised  by  the  siege,  and 
to  place  the  city  in  a  state  of  defence  should  the  Turks  again 


THE   REWARD    OF   VALOUR  391 

lay  siege  to  it ;  and  methinks  Mahomet  will  not  sit  down 
quietly  under  the  heavy  reverse  his  troops  have  met  with." 

"But  I  should  be  glad  to  stay  here  to  assist  in  the  work, 
your  Highness." 

"  There  are  plenty  of  knights  to  see  to  that,"  D'Aubusson 
replied,  "  and  it  will  be  long  before  you  are  fit  for  such  work. 
No,  I  give  my  orders  for  you  to  proceed  with  Caretto  to  Genoa 
— unless,  indeed,  you  would  prefer  to  go  to  some  other  locality 
to  recruit  your  strength." 

"  I  would  much  rather  go  with  Sir  Fabricius,  your  Highness, 
than  to  any  place  where  I  have  no  acquaintances.  I  have  a 
great  esteem  and  respect  for  him." 

"  He  is  worthy  of  it ;  there  is  no  nobler  knight  in  the  Order, 
and,  had  I  fallen,  none  who  could  more  confidently  have  been 
selected  to  fill  my  place.  He  has  an  equally  high  opinion  of 
you,  and  spoke  long  and  earnestly  concerning  you." 

A  fortnight  later  the  ship  carrying  the  two  knights  arrived 
at  Genoa. 

' '  I  will  go  ashore  at  once,  Gervaise, ' '  Caretto  said.  ' '  I  know 
not  whether  my  cousin  is  in  the  city  or  on  her  estate ;  if  the 
former,  I  will  stay  with  her  for  a  day  or  two  before  going  off 
to  my  commandery,  and  of  course  you  will  also  be  her  guest. 
I  hope  she  will  be  here,  for  methinks  we  shall  both  need  to  re- 
fit our  wardrobes  before  we  are  fit  to  appear  in  society. ' ' 

"  Certainly  I  shall,"  Gervaise  agreed;  "for,  indeed,  I  find 
that  my  gala  costume  suffered  a  good  deal  during  my  long  ab- 
sence ;  and,  moreover,  although  I  have  not  increased  in  height,  I 
have  broadened  out  a  good  deal  since  I  was  here  two  years  ago. 

"  Yes  ;  you  were  a  youth  then,  Gervaise,  and  now  you  are 
a  man,  and  one  of  no  ordinary  strength  and  size.  The  sun  of 
Tripoli,  and  your  labours  during  the  siege,  have  added  some 
years  to  your  appearance.  You  are,  I  think,  little  over  twenty, 
but  you  look  two  or  three  years  older.  The  change  is  even 
greater  in  your  manner  than  in  your  appearance ;  you  were 
then  new  to  command,  doubtful  as  to  your  own  powers,  and 


392 

diffident  with  those  older  than  yourself.  Now  for  two  years 
you  have  thought  and  acted  for  yourself,  and  have  shown 
yourself  capable  of  making  a  mark  even  among  men  like  the 
knights  of  St.  John,  both  in  valour  and  in  fitness  to  command. 
You  saved  St.  Nicholas,  you  saved  the  life  of  the  grand  master ; 
and  in  the  order  of  the  day  he  issued  on  the  morning  we  left, 
granting  you  three  months'  leave  for  the  recovery  of  your 
wounds,  he  took  the  opportunity  of  recording,  in  the  name  of 
the  council  and  himself,  their  admiration  for  the  services  ren- 
dered by  you  during  the  siege,  and  his  own  gratitude  for  sav- 
ing his  life  when  he  lay  helpless  and  surrounded  by  the  Mos- 
lems— a  testimony  of  which  any  knight  of  Christendom  might 
well  feel  proud." 

It  was  three  hours  before  Caretto  returned  to  the  ship. 

"  My  cousin  is  at  home,  and  will  be  delighted  to  see  you. 
I  am  sorry  that  I  have  kept  you  waiting  so  long,  but  at  pres- 
ent Genoa,  and,  indeed,  all  Europe,  is  agog  at  the  news  of  the 
defeat  of  the  Turks,  and  Italy  especially  sees  clearly  enough 
that,  had  Rhodes  fallen,  she  would  have  been  the  next  object  of 
attack  by  Mahomet ;  therefore  the  ladies  would  not  hear  of 
my  leaving  them  until  I  had  told  them  something  at  least  of 
the  events  of  the  siege,  and  also  how  it  came  about  that  you 
were  there  to  share  in  the  defence.  I  see  that  you  are  ready 
to  land  ;  therefore,  let  us  be  going  at  once.  Most  of  the  peo- 
ple will  be  taking  their  siesta  at  present,  and  we  shall  get 
through  the  streets  without  being  mobbed ;  for  I  can  assure 
you  that  the  mantle  of  the  Order  is  just  at  present  in  such  high 
favour  that  I  had  a  hard  task  to  wend  my  way  through  the 
streets  to  my  cousin's  house." 

On  arriving  at  the  palace  of  the  Countess  of  Forli,  Gervaise 
was  surprised  at  the  change  that  had  taken  place  in  the  Lady 
Claudia.  From  what  Caretto  had  said,  he  was  prepared  to 
find  that  she  had  grown  out  of  her  girlhood,  and  had  altered 
much.  She  had,  however,  changed  even  more  than  he  had 
expected,  and  had  become,  he  thought,  the  fairest  woman  that 


THE    REWARD    OF   VALOUR  393 

he  had  ever  seen.  The  countess  greeted  him  with  great  cor- 
diality ;  but  Claudia  came  forward  with  a  timidity  that  con- 
trasted strangely  with  the  outspoken  frankness  he  remembered 
in  the  girl.  For  a  time  they  all  chatted  together  of  the  events 
of  the  siege,  and  of  his  captivity. 

' '  The  news  that  you  had  been  captured  threw  quite  a  gloom 
over  us,  Sir  Gervaise,"  the  countess  said.  "  We  at  first  con- 
soled ourselves  with  the  thought  that  you  would  speedily  be 
ransomed ;  but  when  months  passed  by,  and  we  heard  that  all 
the  efforts  of  the  grand  master  had  failed  to  discover  where 
you  had  been  taken,  I  should  have  lost  all  hope  had  it  not 
been  that  my  cousin  had  returned  after  an  even  longer  captiv- 
ity among  the  Moors.  I  am  glad  to  hear  that  you  did  not 
suffer  so  many  hardships  as  he  did." 

"  I  am  in  no  way  to  be  pitied,  Countess,"  Gervaise  said 
lightly.  "  I  had  a  kind  master  for  some  months,  and  was 
treated  as  a  friend  rather  than  as  a  slave ;  afterwards,  I  had 
the  good  fortune  to  be  made  the  head  of  the  labourers  at  the 
buildings  in  the  sultan's  palace,  and  although  I  certainly  worked 
with  them,  the  labour  was  not  greater  than  one  could  perform 
without  distress,  and  I  had  naught  to  complain  of  as  to  my 
condition." 

After  talking  for  upwards  of  an  hour,  the  countess  told 
Caretto  that  she  had  several  matters  on  which  she  needed  his 
counsel,  and  retired  with  him  to  the  next  room  of  the  suite 
opening  from  the  apartment  in  which  they  had  been  sitting.  For 
a  minute  or  two  the  others  sat  silent,  and  then  Claudia  said,— 

"  You  have  changed  much  since  I  saw  you  last,  Sir  Ger- 
vaise. Then  it  seemed  to  me  scarcely  possible  that  you  could 
have  performed  the  feat  of  destroying  the  corsair  fleet ;  now  it 
is  not  so  difficult  to  understand." 

"  I  have  widened  out  a  bit,  Lady  Claudia.  My  moustache 
is  really  a  moustache,  and  not  a  pretence  at  one ;  otherwise  I 
don't  feel  that  I  have  changed.  The  alteration  in  yourself  is 
infinitely  greater." 


394  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

"  I,  too,  have  filled  out,"  she  said,  with  a  smile.  "  I  was 
a  thin  girl  then — all  corners  and  angles.  No,  I  don't  want 
any  compliments,  of  which,  to  tell  you  the  truth,  I  am  heart- 
ily sick.  And  so,"  she  went  on  in  a  softer  tone,  "  you  have 
actually  brought  my  gage  home  !  Oh,  Sir  Gervaise," — and 
her  eyes  filled  with  tears — "my  cousin  has  told  me!  How 
could  you  have  been  so  foolish  as  to  remain  voluntarily  in  cap- 
tivity, that  you  might  recover  the  gage  a  child  had  given  you  ?  ' ' 

"  Not  a  child,  Lady  Claudia.  A  girl  not  yet  a  woman,  I 
admit ;  yet  it  was  not  given  in  the  spirit  of  a  young  girl,  but 
in  that  of  an  earnest  woman.  I  had  taken  a  vow  never  to 
part  with  it,  as  you  had  pledged  yourself  to  bestow  no  similar 
favour  upon  any  other  knight.  I  was  confident  that  you  would 
keep  your  vow  ;  and  although  in  any  .case,  as  a  true  knight,  I 
was  bound  to  preserve  your  gift,  still  more  so  was  I  bound  by 
the  thought  of  the  manner  in  which  you  had  presented  it  to 
me." 

' '  But  I  could  not  have  blamed  you — I  should  never  have 
dreamt  of  blaming  you,"  she  said  earnestly,  "  for  losing  it  as 
you  did. ' ' 

"  I  felt  sure,  Lady  Claudia,  that  had  it  been  absolutely  be- 
yond my  power  to  regain  it  you  would  not  have  blamed  me ; 
but  it  was  not  beyond  my  power,  and  that  being  so  had  I  been 
obliged  to  wait  for  ten  years,  instead  of  two,  I  would  not  have 
come  back  to-you  without  it.  Moreover,  you  must  remember 
that  I  prized  it  beyond  all  things.  I  had  often  scoffed  at 
knights  of  an  order  like  ours  wearing  ladies'  favours.  I  had 
always  thought  it  absurd  that  we,  pledged  as  we  are,  should 
thus  declare  ourselves  admirers  of  one  woman  more  than  an- 
other. But  this  seemed  to  me  a  gage  of  another  kind  ;  it  was 
too  sacred  to  be  shown  or  spoken  of,  and  I  only  mentioned  it 
to  Caretto  as  he  cross-questioned  me  as  to  why  I  refused  the 
offer  of  ransom  ;  and  should  not  have  done  so  then,  had  he 
not  been  present  when  it  was  bestowed.  I  regarded  it  not  as  a 
lightly-given  favour,  the  result  of  a  passing  fancy  by  one  who 


THE    REWARD    OF   VALOUR  395 

gave  favours  freely,  but  as  a  pledge  of  friendship  and  as  a 
guerdon  for  what  I  had  done,  and  therefore,  more  to  be  hon- 
oured than  the  gifts  of  a  Republic  freed  from  a  passing  danger. 
Had  you  then  been  what  you  are  now,  I  might  have  been 
foolish  enough  to  think  of  it  in  another  light,  regardless  of 
the  fact  that  you  are  a  rich  heiress  of  one  of  the  noblest 
families  in  Italy,  and  I  a  knight  with  no  possessions  save  my 
sword. ' ' 

"  Say  not  so,  Sir  Gervaise,"  she  said  impetuously.  "Are 
you  not  a  knight  on  whom  Genoa  and  Florence  have  bestowed 
their  citizenship,  whom  the  Holy  Father  himself  has  thanked, 
who  has  been  honoured  by  Pisa,  and  whom  Ferdinand  of 
Naples  has  created  a  Knight  of  the  Grand  Cross  of  St.  Michael, 
whom  the  grand  master  has  singled  out  for  praise  among  all 
the  valiant  knights  of  the  Order  of  St.  John,  who,  as  my  cousin 
tells  me,  saved  him  and  the  fort  he  commanded  from  capture, 
and  who  stood  alone  over  the  fallen  grand  master,  surrounded 
by  a  crowd  of  foes.  How  can  you  speak  of  yourself  as  a  sim- 
ple knight  ? ' ' 

Then  she  stopped,  and  sat  silent  for  a  minute,  while  a  flush 
of  colour  mounted  to  her  cheeks.  "  Give  me  my  gage  again, 
Sir  Gervaise,"  she  said  gently. 

In  silence  Gervaise  removed  it  from  his  neck,  wondering 
greatly  what  could  be  her  intention.  She  turned  it  over  and 
over  in  her  hand. 

"  Sir  Knight,"  she  said,  "  this  was  of  no  great  value  in  my 
eyes  when  I  bestowed  it  upon  you  ;  it  was  a  gage,  and  not  a 
gift.  Now  it  is  to  me  of  value  beyond  the  richest  gem  on 
earth ;  it  is  a  proof  of  the  faith  and  loyalty  of  the  knight  I 
most  esteem  and  honour,  and  so  in  giving  it  to  you  again,  I  part 
with  it  with  a  pang,  for  I  have  far  greater  reason  to  prize  it 
than  you  can  have.  I  gave  it  you  before  as  a  girl,  proud  that 
a  knight  who  had  gained  such  honour  and  applause  should  wear 
her  favour,  and  without  the  thought  that  the  trinket  was  a 
heart.  I  give  it  to  you  now  as  a  woman,  far  prouder  than  be- 


396  A    KNIGHT   OF   THE   WHITE   CROSS 

fore  that  you  should  wear  her  gage,  and  not  blind  to  the 
meaning  of  the  emblem." 

Gervaise  took  her  hand  as  she  fastened  it  round  his  neck, 
and  kissed  it ;  then,  still  holding  it,  he  said, — 

' '  Do  you  know  what  you  are  doing,  Claudia  ?  You  are 
raising  hopes  that  I  have  never  been  presumptuous  enough  to 
cherish. ' ' 

"  I  cannot  help  that,"  she  said  softly.  "  There  is  assuredly 
no  presumption  in  the  hope." 

He  paused  a  moment. 

"You  would  not  esteem  me,"  he  said,  holding  both  her 
hands  now,  "  were  I  false  to  my  vows.  I  will  return  to 
Rhodes  to-morrow,  and  ask  the  grand  master  to  forward  to 
the  Pope  and  endorse  my  petition,  that  I  may  be  released 
from  my  vows  to  the  Order.  I  cannot  think  that  he  or  the 
Holy  Father  will  refuse  my  request.  Then,  when  I  am  free, 
I  can  tell  you  how  I  love  and  honour  you,  and  how,  as  I  have 
in  the  past  devoted  my  life  to  the  Order,  so  I  will  in  the  future 
devote  it  to  your  happiness." 

The  girl  bowed  her  head. 

"  'Tis  right  it  should  be  s"o,"  she  said.  "I  have  waited, 
feeling  in  my  heart  that  the  vow  I  had  given  would  bind  me 
for  life,  and  I  should  be  content  to  wait  years  longer  if  needs 
be.  But  I  am  bound  by  no  vows,  and  can  acknowledge  that 
you  have  long  been  the  lord  of  my  life,  and  that  so  long  as 
you  wore  the  heart  I  had  given  you,  so  long  would  I  listen  to 
the  wooing  of  no  other." 

"  I  fear  that  the  Countess,  your  mother "  Gervaise  be- 
gan, but  she  interrupted  him. 

"You  need  not  fear,"  she  said.  "  My  mother  has  long 
known,  and  knowing  also  that  I  am  not  given  to  change,  has 
ceased  to  importune  me  to  listen  to  other  offers.  Her  sole 
objection  was  that  you  might  never  return  from  captivity. 
Now  that  yoil  have  come  back  with  added  honours,  she  will 
not  only  offer  no  objection,  but  will,  I  am  sure,  receive  you 


THE    REWARD    OF   VALOUR  397 

gladly,  especially  as  she  knows  that  my  cousin  Sir  Fabricius, 
for  whom  she  has  the  greatest  affection,  holds  you  in  such 
high  esteem." 

Six  months  later  Gervaise  again  landed  at  Genoa,  after  hav- 
ing stayed  at  Rome  for  a  few  days  on  his  way  back.  D'Au- 
busson  had  expressed  no  surprise  at  his  return  to  Rhodes,  or 
at  the  request  he  made. 

"  Caretto  prepared  me  for  this,"  he  said,  smiling,  "  when 
he  asked  me  if  you  might  accompany  him  to  Genoa.  The 
Order  will  be  a  loser,  for  you  would  assuredly  have  risen  to 
the  grand  priorage  of  your  langue  some  day.  But  we  have 
no  right  to  complain ;  you  have  done  your  duty  and  more, 
and  I  doubt  not  that  should  Mahomet  again  lay  siege  to 
Rhodes,  we  may  count. on  your  hastening  here  to  aid  us?  " 

"  That  assuredly  you  may,  sir.  Should  danger  threaten, 
my  sword  will  be  as  much  at  the  service  of  the  Order  as  if  I 
were  still  a  member  of  it." 

"I  by  no  means  disapprove,"  D'Aubusson  went  on,  "of 
knights  leaving  us  when  they  have  performed  their  active  ser- 
vice, for  in  civil  life  they  sometimes  have  it  in  their  power  to 
render  better  service  to  the  Order  than  if  passing  their  lives 
in  the  quiet  duties  of  a  provincial  commandery.  It  will  be  so 
in  your  case :  the  lady  is  a  great  heiress,  and,  as  the  possessor 
of  wide  lands,  your  influence  in  Northern  Italy  may  be  very 
valuable  to  us,  and  in  case  of  need  you  will,  like  my  brother 
De  Monteuil,  be  able  to  bring  a  gathering  of  men-at-arms  to 
our  aid.  Have  no  fear  that  the  Pope  will  refuse  to  you  a  re- 
lease from  your  vows.  My  recommendation  alone  would  be 
sufficient ;  but  as,  moreover,  he  is  himself  under  an  obligation 
to  you,  he  will  do  so  without  hesitation.  Since  you  have 
been  away,  your  friend  Harcourt  has  been  appointed  a  com- 
mander of  a  galley,  and  Sir  John  Boswell,  being  incapacitated 
by  the  grievous  wounds  he  received  during  the  siege,  has  ac- 
cepted a  rich  commandery  in  England,  and  sailed  but  two 
days  since  to  take  up  his  charge.  By  the  way,  did  you  write 


398  A    KNIGHT    OF    THE    WHITE    CROSS 

a  reply  to  those  letters  expressing  your  thanks  and  explaining 
your  long  silence  ?  ' ' 

' '  Yes,  your  Highness,  I  wrote  the  same  evening  you  gave 
them  to  me." 

"  That  is  right.  The  money  voted  you  by  Florence  will  be 
useful  to  you  now,  and  there  is  still  a  sum  sent  by  your  com- 
mandery  owing  to  you  by  the  treasury.  I  will  give  you  an 
order  for  it.  However  rich  an  heiress  a  knight  may  win,  'tis 
pleasant  for  him  to  have  money  of  his  own  ;  not  that  you  will 
need  it  greatly,  for,  among  the  presents  you  have  received, 
the  jewels  are  valuable  enough  for  a  wedding  gift  to  a  princess. ' ' 

Gervaise  was  well  received  at  Rome,  and  the  Pope,  after 
reading  the  grand  master's  letter,  and  learning  from  him  his 
reason  for  wishing  to  leave  the  Order,  without  hesitation 
granted  him  absolution  from  his  vows.  A  few  months  later 
there  was  a  grand  wedding  at  the  cathedral  of  Genoa,  the 
doge  and  all  the  nobles  of  the  Republic  being  present. 

Ralph  Harcourt  and  nine  other  young  knights  had  accom- 
panied Gervaise  from  Rhodes  by  the  permission,  and  indeed  at 
the  suggestion,  of  the  grand  master,  who  was  anxious  to  show 
that  Gervaise  had  his  full  approval  and  countenance  in  leaving 
the  Order.  Caretto  who  had  been  appointed  grand  prior  of 
Italy,  had  brought  the  knights  from  all  the  commanderies  in 
the  northern  republics  to  do  honour  to  the  occasion,  and  the 
whole,  in  theitrich  armour  and  the  mantles  of  the  Order, 
made  a  distinguishing  feature  in  the  scene. 

The  defeat  of  the  Turks  created  such  enthusiasm  throughout 
Europe  that  when  the  grand  prior  of  England  laid  before  the 
king  letters  he  had  received  from  the  grand  master  and  Sir 
John  Kendall,  speaking  in  the  highest  terms  of  the  various 
great  services  Gervaise  had  rendered  to  the  Order,  Edward 
granted  his  request  that  the  act  of  attainder  against  Sir  Thomas 
Tresham  and  his  descendants  should  be  reversed  and  the  estates 
restored  to  Gervaise.  The  latter  made,  with  his  wife,  occa- 
sional journeys  to  England,  staying  a  few  months  on  his  estates 


THE    REWARD    OF   VALOUR  399 

in  Kent ;  and  as  soon  as  his  second  son  became  old  enough,  he 
sent  him  to  England  to  be  educated,  and  settled  the  estate 
upon  him.  He  himself  had  but  few  pleasant  memories  of 
England  ;  he  had  spent  indeed  but  a  very  short  time  there 
before  he  entered  the  house  of  the  Order  in  Clerkenwell,  and 
that  time  had  been  marked  by  constant  anxiety,  and  concluded 
with  the  loss  of  his  father.  The  great  estates  that  were  now 
his  in  Italy  demanded  his  full  attention,  and,  as  one  of  the 
most  powerful  nobles  of  Genoa,  he  had  come  to  take  a  promi- 
nent part  in  the  affairs  of  the  Republic. 

He  was  not  called  upon  to  fulfil  his  promise  to  aid  in  the 
defence  of  Rhodes,  for  the  death  of  Mahomet  just  at  the  time 
when  he  was  preparing  a  vast  expedition  against  it,  freed  the 
Island  for  a  long  time  from  fear  of  an  invasion.  From  time  to 
time  they  received  visits  from  Ralph  Harcourt,  who,  after 
five  years  longer  service  at  Rhodes,  received  a  commandery  in 
England.  He  held  it  a  few  years  only,  and  then  returned  to 
the  Island,  where  he  obtained  a  high  official  appointment. 

In  1489  Sir  John  Boswell  became  bailiff  of  the  English 
langue,  and  Sir  Fabricius  Caretto  was  in  1513  elected  grand 
master  of  the  Order,  and  held  the  office  eight  years,  dying  in 
1521. 

When,  in  1522,  forty-two  years  after  the  first  siege,  Rhodes 
was  again  beleaguered,  Gervaise,  who  had,  on  the  death  of  the 
countess,  become  Count  of  Forli,  raised  a  large  body  of  men- 
at-arms,  and  sent  them,  under  the  command  of  his  eldest  son, 
to  take  part  in  the  defence.  His  third  son  had,  at  the  age  of 
sixteen,  entered  the  Order,  and  rose  to  high  rank  in  it. 

The  defence,  though  even  more  obstinate  and  desperate  than 
the  first,  was  attended  with  less  success,  for  after  inflicting 
enormous  losses  upon  the  great  army,  commanded  by  the 
Sultan  Solyman  himself,  the  town  was  forced  to  yield  ;  for 
although  the  Grand  Master  L'Isle  Adam,  and  most  of  his 
knights,  would  have  preferred  to  bury  themselves  beneath  the 
ruins  rather  than  yield,  they  were  deterred  from  doing  so, 


400  A    KNIGHT   OF    THE   WHITE    CROSS 

by  the  knowledge  that  it  would  have  entailed  the  massacre  of 
the  whole  of  the  inhabitants,  who  had  throughout  the  siege 
fought  valiantly  in  the  defence  of  the  town.  Solyman  had 
suffered  such  enormous  losses  that  he  was  glad  to  grant  favour- 
able conditions,  and  the  knights  sailed  away  from  the  city  they 
had  held  so  long  and  with  such  honour,  and  afterwards  estab- 
lished themselves  in  Malta,  where  they  erected  another  strong- 
hold, which  in  the  end  proved  an  even  more  valuable  bulwark 
to  Christendom  than  Rhodes  had  been.  There  'were  none 
who  assisted  more  generously  and  largely,  by  gifts  of  money, 
in  the  establishment  of  the  Order  at  Malta  than  Gervaise. 
His  wife,  while  she  lived,  was  as  eager  to  aid  in  the  cause  as 
he  was  himself,  holding  that  it  was  to  the  Order  she  owed  her 
husband.  And  of  all  their  wide  possessions  there  were  none 
so  valued  by  them  both,  as  the  little  coral  heart  set  in  pearls 
that  she,  as  a  girl,  had  given  him,  and  he  had  so  faithfully 
brought  back  to  her. 


THE    END. 


"  Wherever  English  is  spoken  one  imagines  that  Mr.  Henty's 
name  is  known.  One  cannot  enter  a  schoolroom  or  look  at  a 
boy's  bookshelf  without  seeing  half-a-dozen  of  his  familiar 
volumes.  Mr.  Henty  is  no  doubt  the  most  successful  writer 
for  boys,  and  the  one  to  whose  new  volumes  they  look  forward 
every  Christmas  with  most  pleasure." — Review  of  Reviews. 


A   LIST   OF   BOOKS 
FOR  YOUNG   PEOPLE 

...  By  ... 

G.  A.  HENTY  GORDON  STABLES 

G.  M.  FENN  ROBERT  LEIGHTON 

S.  BARING-GOULD  HARRY     COLLINGWOOD 

KIRK   MUNROE  ROSA    MULHOLLAND 

F.    FRANKFORT     MOORE  ALICE  CORKRAN,  ETC 

Published  by 

CHARLES    SCRIBNER'S    SONS 

J53  to  J57  Fifth  Avenue          &  >*          New  York 


BOOKS  FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLE 


G,  A.  HENTY'S  POPULAR  STORIES  FOR  BOYS. 


NEW  VOLUMES  FOR   1900-1901. 


Mr.  Henty.  the  most  popular  writer  of  Books  of  Adventure  in  England,  adds 
three  new  volumes  to  his  list  this  fall— books  that  will  delight  thousands  of 
boys  on  this  side  who  have  become  his  ardent  admirers. 


WITH  BULLER  IN  NATAL 

Or,  A  Born  Leader.     By  G.  A.  HENTY.    With  10  Illustrations 
by  W.  RAINEY.     12mo,  $1.50. 

The  breaking  out  of  the  Boer  War  compelled  Chris  King,  the  hero 
of  the  story,  to  flee  with  his  mother  from  Johannesburg  to  the  sea 
coast.  They  were  with  many  other  Uitlanders,  and  all  suffered  much 
from  the  Boers.  Reaching  a  place  of  safety  for  then-  families,  Chris 
and  twenty  of  his  friends  formed  an  independent  company  of  scouts. 
In  this  service  they  were  with  Gen.  Yule  at  Glencoe,  then  in  Lady- 
smith,  then  with  Buller.  In  each  place  they  had  many  thrilling  ad- 
ventures. They  were  in  great  battles,  and  in  lonely  fights  on  the 
Veldt ;  were  taken  prisoners  and  escaped ;  and  they  rendered  most 
valuable  service  to  the  English  forces.  The  story  is  a  most  interesting 
picture  of  the  War  in  South  Africa. 

OUT  WITH  GARIBALDI 

A  Story  of  the  Liberation  of  Italy.    By  G.  A.  HENTY.    With 
8  Illustrations  by  W.  RAINEY,  R.  I.     12mo,  $1.50. 

Garibaldi  himself  is  the  central  figure  of  this  brilliant  story,  and  the 
little-known  history  of  the  struggle  for  Italian  freedom  is  told  here  in 
the  most  thrilling  way.  From  the  time  the  hero,  a  young  lad,  son  of 
an  English  father  and  an  Italian  mother,  joins  Garibaldi's  band  of 
1,000  men  in  the  first  descent  upon  Sicily,  which  was  garrisoned  by  one 
of  the  large  Neapolitan  armies,  until  the  end,  when  all  those  armies 
are  beaten,  and  the  two  Sicilys  are  conquered,  we  follow  with  the 
keenest  interest  the  exciting  adventures  of  the  lad  in  scouting,  in 
battle,  and  in  freeing  those  in  prison  for  liberty's  sake. 

IN  THE  IRISH  BRIGADE 

By  G.  A.  HENTY.    12mo,  $1.50. 

Desmond  Kennedy  is  a  young  Irish  lad  who  left  Ireland  to  join  the 
Irish  Brigade  in  the  service  of  Louis  XIV.  of  France.  In  Paris  he  in- 
curred the  deadly  hatred  of  a  powerful  courtier  from  whom  he  had 
rescued  a  young  girl  who  had  been  kidnapped,  and  his  perils  are  of  ab- 
sorbing interest.  Captured  in  an  attempted  Jacobite  invasion  of  Scot- 
land, he  escaped  in  a  most  extraordinary  manner.  As  aide-de-camp 
to  the  Duke  of  Berwick  he  experienced  thrilling  adventures  in  Flan- 
ders. Transferred  to  the  Army  in  Spain,  he  was  nearly  assassinated,  but 
escaped  to  return,  when  peace  was  declared,  to  his  native  land,  having 
received  pardon  and  having  recovered  his  estates.  The  story  is  filled 
with  adventure,  and  the  interest  never  abates. 


BOOKS  FOB  YOUNG  PEOPLE 


BY  G.  A,  HENTY. 

"  Surely  Mr.  Henty  should  understand  boys'  tastes  better' than  any  man 
living."—  The  Times. 


WON  BY  THE  SWORD 

A  Tale  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War.      With  12  Illustrations  by 
CHARLES  M.  SHELDON,  and  4  Plans.    12mo,  $1.50. 

The  scene  of  this  story  is  laid  in  France,  during  the  time  of  Richelieu 
of  Mazarin  and  Anne  of  Austria.  The  hero,  Hector  Campbell,  is  the 
orphaned  son  of  a  Scotch  officer  in  the  French  Army.  How  he  at- 
tracted the  notice  of  Marshal  Turenne  and  of  the  Prince  of  Conde ; 
how  he  rose  to  the  rank  of  Colonel ;  how  he  finally  had  to  leave  France, 
pursued  by  the  deadly  hatred  of  the  Due  de  Beaufort— all  these  and 
much  more  the  story  tells  with  the  most  absorbing  interest. 

NO  SURRENDER 

The  Story  of  the  Revolt  in  La  Vendee.  With  8  Illustrations 
by  STANLEY  L.  WOOD.  12mo,  $1.50. 

The  revolt  of  La  Vende'e  against  the  French  Republic  at  the  time  of 
the  Revolution  forms  the  groundwork  of  this  absorbing  story.  Leigh 
Stansfield,  a  young  English  lad,  is  drawn  into  the  thickest  of  the  con- 
flict. Forming  a  company  of  boys  as  scouts  for  the  Vende"an  Army, 
he  greatly  aids  the  peasants.  He  rescues  his  sister  from  the  guillotine, 
and  finally,  after  many  thrilling  experiences,  when  the  cause  of  La 
Vende'e  is  lost,  he  escapes  to  England. 

A  ROVING  COMMISSION 

Or,  Through  the  Black  Insurrection  at  Hayti.  With  12  Illus- 
trations by  WILLIAM  RAINEY.  12mo,  $1.50. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  brilliant  of  Mr.  Henty's  books.  A  story  of 
the  sea,  with  all  its  life  and  action,  it  is  also  full  of  thrilling  adven- 
tures on  land.  So  it  holds  the  keenest  interest  until  the  end.  The 
scene  is  a  new  one  to  Mr.  Henty's  readers,  being  laid  at  the  time  of  the 
Great  Revolt  of  the  Blacks,  by  which  Hayti  became  independent. 
Toussaint  1'Overture- appears,  and  an  admirable  picture  is  given  of  him 
and  of  his  power. 

AT  ABOUKIR  AND  ACRE 

A  Story  of  Napoleon's  Invasion  of  Egypt.  With  8  full-page 
Illustrations  by  WILLIAM  RAINEY,  and  3  Plans.  12mo, 
$1.50. 

The  hero,  having  saved  the  life  of  the  son  of  an  Arab  chief,  is  taken 
into  the  tribe,  has  a  part  in  the  battle  of  the  Pyramids  and  the  revolt 
at  Cairo.  He  is  an  eye-witness  of  the  famous  naval  battle  of  Aboukir, 
and  later  is  in  the  hardest  of  the  defense  of  Acre. 


BOOKS  FOB  YOUNG  PEOPLE 


BYG.  A,  HENTY 

"  Mr.  Henty  is  the  king  of  story-tellers  for  boys."— Sword  caul  Trowel. 


UNDER  WELLINGTON'S  COMMAND 

A  Tale  of  the  Peninsular  War.  With  12  Illustrations  by  WAL 
PAGET.  12mo,  11.50. 

The  dashing  hero  of  this  book.  Terence  O'Connor,  was  the  hero  of 
Mr.  Henty's  previous  book,  "  With  Moore  at  Corunna,"  to  which  this 
Is  really  a  sequel.  He  is  still  at  the  head  of  the  "  Minbo  "  Portuguese 
regiment.  Being  detached  on  independent  and  guerilla  duty  with  his 
regiment,  he  renders  invaluable  service  in  gaining  information  and  in 
harassing  the  French.  His  command,  being  constantly  on  the  edge  of 
the  army,  is  engaged  in  frequent  skirmishes  and  some  most  important 
battles. 

BOTH  SIDES  THE  BORDER 

A  Tale  of  Hotspur  and  Glendower.  With  12  full-page  Illus- 
trations by  RALPH  PEACOCK.  12mo,  $1.50. 

This  is  a  brilliant  story  of  the  stirring  times  of  the  beginning  of  the 
Wars  of  the  Roses,  when  the  Scotch,  under  Douglas,  and  the  Welsh, 
under  Owen  Glendower,  were  attacking  the  English.  The  hero  of  the 
book  lived  near  the  Scotch  border,  and  saw  many  a  hard  fight  there. 
Entering  the  service  of  Lord  Percy,  he  was  sent  to  Wales,  where  he 
was  knighted,  and  where  he  was  captured.  Being  released,  he  returned 
home,  and  shared  in  the  fatal  battle  of  Shrewsbury. 

ST.  BARTHOLOMEWS  EVE 

A  Tale  of  the  Huguenot  Wars.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  12 
full-page  Illustrations  by  H.  J.  DRAPER,  and  a  Map. 
Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero,  Philip  Fletcher,  has  a  French  connection  on  his  mother's 
side.  This  induces  him  to  cross  the  Channel  in  order  to  take  a  share 
in  the  Huguenot  wars.  Naturally  he  sides  with  the  Protestants,  dis- 
tinguishes nimself  in  various  battles,  and  receives  rapid  promotion  for 
the  zeal  and  daring  with  which  he  carries  out  several  secret  missions. 

REDSKIN  AND  COW-BOY 

A  Tale  of  the  Western  Plains.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  12 
full-page  Illustrations  by  ALFRED  PEARSE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  central  interest  of  this  story  is  found  in  the  many  adventures  of 
an  English  lad,  who  seeks  employment  as  a  cow-boy  on  a  cattle  ranch. 
His  experiences  during  a  "  round-up  "  present  in  picturesque  form  the 
toilsome,  exciting,  ad\enturous  life  of  a  cow-boy  ;  while  the  perils  of  a 
frontier  settlement  are  vividly  set  forth  in  an  Indian  raid. 


BOOKS  FOR  FOUSO  PEOPLK 


BY  G.  A.  HEWTY 

••  No  country  nor  epoch  of  history  la  there  which  Mr.  Henty  does  not  know, 
and  what  is  really  remarkable  la  that  he  always  writes  well  and  Interestingly.'5 

— Sew  For*  Times. 


WITH  FREDERICK  THE  GREAT 

A  Tale  of  the  Seven  Years'  War.    "With  12  full -page  Illustra- 
tions.   12mo,  $1.50. 

The  hero  of  this  story  while  still  a  youth  entered  the  service  of  Fred- 
erick the  Great,  and  by  a  succession  of  fortunate  circumstances  and 
perilous  adventures,  rose  to  the  rank  of  colonel.  Attached  to  the  staff 
of  the  king,  he  rendered  distinguished  services  in  many  battles,  in  one 
of  which  he  saved  the  king's  life.  Twice  captured  and  imprisoned,  he 
both  times  escaped  from  the  Austrian  fortresses. 

A  MARCH  ON  LONDON 

A  Story  of  Wat  Tyler's  Bising.    With   8  full-page  Illustra- 
tions by  W.  H.  MARGETSON.     12mo,  £1.50. 

The  story  of  Wat  Tyler's  Rebellion  is  but  little  known,  but  the  hero 
of  this  story  passes  through  that  perilous  time  and  taken  part  in  the 
civil  war  in  Flanders  which  followed  soon  after.  Although  young  he  is 
thrown  into  many  exciting  and  dangerous  adventures,  through  which 
be  passes  with  great  coolness  and  much  credit. 

WITH  MOORE  AT  CORUNNA 

A  Story  of  the  Peninsular  War.  With  12  full-page  Illustra- 
tions by  WAL  PAGET.  12mo,  $1.50. 

Terence  O'Connor  is  living  with  his  widowed  father,  Captain  O'Connor 
of  the  Mayo  Fusiliers,  with  the  regiment  at  the  time  when  the  Penin- 
sular war  began.  Upon  the  regiment  being  ordered  to  Spain,  Terence 
gets  appointed  as  aid  to  one  of  the  generals  of  a  division.  By  his  brav- 
ery and  great  usefulness  throughout  the  war,  he  is  rewarded  by  a  com- 
mission as  colonel  in  the  Portuguese  army  and  there  rendered  great 
service. 

ON  THE  IRRAWADDY 

A  Story  of  the  First  Burmese  War.  With  8  full-page  Illus- 
trations by  W.  H.  OVEREND.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges, 
$1.50. 

The  hero,  having  an  uncle,  a  trader  on  the  Indian  and  Burmese  rivers, 
goes  out  to  join  him.  Soon  after,  war  is  declared  by  Burmah  against 
England  and  he  is  drawn  into  it.  He  has  many  experiences  and  narrow 
escapes  in  battles  and  in  scouting.  With  half-a-dozen  men  he  rescues 
his  cousin  who  had  been  taken  prisoner,  and  in  the  flight  they  are  be- 
eieged  in  an  old,  ruined  temple. 


BOOKS  FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLTS 


BY  G.  A.  HENTY 

"  Boys  like  stirring  adventures,  and  Mr.  Henty  Is  a  master  of  tola  method 
of  composition."— New  York  Times. 


AT  AGINCOURT 

A  Tale  of  the  White  Hoods  of  Paris.  With  12  full-page 
Illustrations  by  WALTEB  PAQET.  Crown  8vo,  olivine 
edges,  $1.50. 

The  story  begins  in  a  grim  feudal  castle  in  Normandie.  The  times 
were  troublous,  and  soon  the  king  compelled  Lady  Margaret  de  Villeroy 
with  her  children  to  go  to  Paris  as  hostages.  Guy  Aylmer  went  with 
her.  Paris  was  turbulent.  Soon  the  guild  of  the  butchers,  adopting 
white  hoods  as  their  uniform,  seized  the  city,  and  besieged  the  house 
where  our  hero  and  his  charges  lived.  After  desperate  fighting,  the 
white  hoods  were  beaten  and  our  hero  and  his  charges  escaped  from  the 
city,  and  from  France. 

WITH  COCHRANE  THE  DAUNTLESS 

A  Tale  of  the  Exploits  of  Lord  Cochrane  in  South  American 
Waters.  With  12  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  H. 
MABGETSON.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero  of  this  story  accompanies  Cochrane  as  midshipman,  and 
serves  in  the  war  between  Chili  and  Peru.  He  has  many  exciting 
adventures  in  battles  by_  sea  and  land,  is  taken  prisoner  and  condemned 
to  death  by  the  Inquisition,  but  escapes  by  a  long  and  thrilling  flight 
across  South  America  and  down  the  Amazon,  piloted  by  two  faithful 
Indians. 

THE  TIGER  OF  MYSORE 

A  Story  of  the  War  with  Tippoo  Saib.  With  12  full-page 
Illustrations  by  W.  H.  MABGETSON,  and  a  Map.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Dick  Holland^  whose  father  is  supposed  to  be  a  captive  of  Tippoo  Saib, 
goes  to  India  to  help  him  to  escape.  He  joins  the  army  under  Lord 
Coruwallis,  and  takes  part  in  the  campaign  against  Tippoo.  Afterwards 
he  assumes  a  disguise,  enters  Seringapatam,  and  at  last  he  discovers  his 
father  in  the  great  stronghold  of  Savandroog.  The  hazardous  rescue  is 
at  length  accomplished,  and  the  young  fellow's  dangerous  mission  is 
done. 

THROUGH  RUSSIAN  SNOWS 

A  Story  of  Napoleon's  Eetreat  from  Moscow.  With  8  full- 
page  Illustrations  by  W.  H.  OVEREND,  and  3  Maps.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero,  Julian  Wyatt,  after  several  adventures  with  smugglers,  by 
whom  he  is  handed  over  a  prisoner  to  the  French,  regains  his  freedom 
and  joins  Napoleon's  army  in  the  Russian  campaign.  When  the  terrible 
retreat  begins,  Julian  finds  himself  in  the  rear  guard  of  the  French  army, 
fighting  desperately.  Ultimately  he  escapes  out  of  the  general  disaster, 
and  returns  to  England. 


BOOKS  FOR  TOUNQ  PJTOPLS 


BY  G.  A.  HENTY 

"  Here  we  have  Mr.  George  Henty— the  Boys'  Own  Author."— Punch. 


A  KNIGHT  OF  THE  WHITE  CROSS 

A  Tale  of  the  Siege  of  Rhodes.  With  12  full-page  Illustra- 
tions by  RALPH  PEACOCK,  and  a  Plan.  Crown  8vo,  olivine 
edges,  81.50. 

Gervaise  Tresham,  the  hero  of  this  story,  joins  the  Order  of  the 
Knights  of  St.  John,  and  proceeds  to  the  stronghold  of  Rhodes.  Sub- 
sequently he  is  appointed  commander  of  a  war-galley,  and  in  his  first 
voyage  destroys  a  fleet  of  Moorish  corsairs.  During  one  of  his  cruises 
the  young  knight  is  attacked  on  shore,  captured  after  a  desperate 
struggle,  and  sold  into  slavery  in  Tripoli  He  succeeds  in  escaping,  and 
returns  to  Rhodes  in  time  to  take  part  in  the  defense  of  that  fortress. 

WULF  THE  SAXON 

A  Story  of  the  Norman  Conquest.  By  G.  A.  HENTT.  With 
12  full-page  Illustrations  by  RALPH  PEACOCK.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  SI. 50. 

The  hero  is  a  young  thane  who  wins  the  favor  of  Earl  Harold  and  be- 
comes one  of  his  retinue.  Wh^n  Harold  becomes  King  of  England  Wulf 
assists  in  the  Welsh  wars,  and  takes  part  against  the  Norsemen  at  the 
Battle  of  Stamford  Bridge.  When  William  of  Normandy  invades  Eng- 
land, Wulf  is  with  the  English  host  at  Hastings,  and  stands  by  his  king 
to  the  last  in  the  mighty  struggle. 

BERIC  THE  BRITON 

A  Story  of  the  Roman  Invasion.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
12  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  PAKKINSON.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50, 

This  story  deals  with  the  invasion  of  Britain  by  the  Roman  legionaries. 
Beric,  who  is  a  boy-chief  of  a  British  tribe,  takes  a  prominent  part  in 
the  insurrection  under  Boadicea;  and  after  the  defeat  of  that  heroic 
queen  (in  A.  D.  62)  he  continues  the  struggle  in  the  fen-country.  Ulti- 
mately Beric  is  defeated  and  carried  captive  to  Rome,  where  he  is  trained 
in  the  exercise  of  arms  in  a  school  of  gladiators.  At  length  he  returns 
to  Britain,  where  he  becomes  ruler  of  his  own  people. 

WHEN  LONDON  BURNED 

A  Story  of  the  Plague  and  the  Fire.    By  G.  A.  HENTT.    With 
12  full-page  Illustrations  by  J.  FINNEMOBE.    Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  SI. 50. 
The  hero  of  this  story  was  the  son  of  a  nobleman  who  had  lost  his 

estates  during  the  troublous  tim^s  of  the  Commonwealth.     During  the 

Great  Plague  and  the  Great  Fire,  Cyril  was  prominent  among  those  wh» 

brought  help  to  the  panic-stricken  inhabitants. 


BOOKS  FOR  TOUXG  PEOPLE 


BY  G.  A. HENTY 

•  Ask  for  Henty,  and  see  that  you  get  him."— Punch. 


THE  DASH  FOR  KHARTOUM 

A  Tale  of  the  Nile  Expedition.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  10 
full-page  Illustrations  by  JOHN  SCHONBEKG  and  J.  NASH. 
Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

In  the  record  of  recent  British  history  there  is  no  more  captivating  page 
for  boys  than  the  story  of  the  Nile  campaign,  and  the  attempt  to  rescue 
General  Gordon.  For,  in  the  difficulties  which  the  expedition  encount- 
ered, in  the  perils  which  it  overpassed,  and  in  its  final  tragic  disappoint- 
ments, are  found  all  the  excitements  of  romance,  as  well  as  the  fascination 
which  belongs  to  real  events. 

BONNIE  PRINCE  CHARLIE 

A  Tale  of  Fontenoy  and  Culloden.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
12  full-page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  adventures  of  the  son  of  a  Scotch  officer  in  French  service.  The 
boy,  brought  up  by  a  Glasgow  bailie,  is  arrested  for  aiding  a  Jacobite 
agent,  escapes,  is  wrecked  on  the  French  coast,  reaches  Paris,  and  serves 
with  the  French  army  at  Dettingen.  He  kills  his  father's  foe  in  a  duel, 
and  escaping  to  the  coast,  shares  the  adventures  of  Prince  Charlie,  but 
finally  settles  happily  in  Scotland. 

UNDER  DRAKE'S  FLAG 

A  Tale  of  the  Spanish  Main.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  12 
full-page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

A  story  of  the  days  when  England  and  Spain  struggled  for  the  suprem- 
acy of  the  sea.  The  heroes  sail  as  lads  with  Drake  in  the  Pacific  expe- 
dition, and  in  his  great  voyage  of  circumnavigation.  The  historical 
portion  of  the  story  is  absolutely  to  be  relied  upon,  but  this  will  perhaps 
be  less  attractive  than  the  great  variety  of  exciting  adventure  through 
which  the  young  heroes  pass  in  the  course  of  their  voyages. 

WITH  WOLFE  IN  CANADA 

Or,  The  Winning  of  a  Continent.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  12 
full -page  Illustrations  by  GOBDON  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Mr.  Henty  here  gives  an  acconnt  of  the  struggle  between  Bri'ain  and 
France  for  supremacy  in  the  North  American  continent.  The  fall  of 
Quebec  decided  that  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  should  predominate  in  the 
New  World ;  and  that  English  and  American  commerce,  the  English 
language,  and  English  literature,  should  spread  right  round  the  globe. 


BOOKS  FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLE 


BY  G.  A   HENTY 

"Mr.  Henty  is  one  of  the  beet  of  story-telleis  for  young  people."— Spectator. 


BY  PIKE  AND  DYKE 

A  Tale  of  the  Eise  of  the  Dutch  Republic.    By  G.  A.  HENTY. 

With  10  full-page  Illustrations  by  MAYNARD  BROWN,  and 

4  Maps.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 
This  story  traces  the  adventures  of  an  English  boy  in  the  household 
of  William  the  Silent.  Edward  Martin,  the  son  of  an  English  sea- 
captain,  enters  the  service  of  the  Prince  as  a  volunter,  and  is  employed 
by  him  in  many  dangerous  and  responsible  missions,  in  the  discharge 
of  which  he  passes  through  the  great  sieges  of  the  time. 

BY  ENGLAND'S  AID 

Or,  The  Freeing  of  the  Netherlands  (1585-1604).    By  Q.  A. 
HENTY.      With    10   full-page    Illustrations    by   ALFRED 
PEARSE,  and  4  Maps.    Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 
The  story  of  two  English  lads  who  go  to  Holland  as  pages  in  the  service 
of  one  of  "the  fighting  Veres."    After  many  adventures  by  sea  and 
land,  one  of  the  lads  finds  himself  on  board  a  Spanish  ship  at  the  time 
of  the  defeat  of  the  Armada,  and  escapes,  only  to  fall  into  the  hands  of 
the  Corsairs.    He  is  successful  in  getting  back  to  Spain,  and  regains 
his  native  country  after  the  capture  of  Cadiz. 

IN  THE  HEART  OF  THE  ROCKIES 

A  Story  of  Adventure  in  Colorado.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  G.  C.  HINDLEY.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero,  Tom  Wade,  goes  to  seek  his  uncle  in  Colorado,  who  is  a 
hunter  and  gold-digger,  and  he  is  discovered,  after  many  dangers,  out 
on  the  plains  with  some  comrades.  Going  in  quest  of  a  gold  mine,  the 
litttle  band  is  spied  by  Indians,  chased  across  the  Bad  Lands,  and 
overwhelmed  by  a  snowstorm  in  the  mountains. 

BY  RIGHT  OF  CONQUEST 

Or,  With  Cortez  in  Mexico.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  10  full- 
page  Illustrations  by  W.  S.  STACEY,  and  2  Maps.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

With  the  Conquest  of  Mexico  as  the  groundwork  of  bis  story,  Mr. 
Henty  has  interwoven  the  adventures  of  an  English  youth.  He  is 
beset  by  many  perils  among  the  natives,  but  by  a  ruse  he  obtains  the 
protection  of  the  Spaniards,  and  after  the  fall  of  Mexieo  he  succeeds  in 
regaiLing  his  native  shore,  with  a  fortune  and  a  charming  Aztec  bride. 

THROUGH  THE  SIKH  WAR 

A  Tale  of  the  Conquest  of  the  Punjaub.     By  G.  A.  HENTY. 

With  12  full-page  Illustrations   by   HAL.  HURST,   and  a 

Map.     Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Percy  Groves,  a  spirited  English  lad,  joins  his  uncle  in  the  Punjaub, 
where  the  natives  are  in  a  state  of  revolt.  Percy  joins  the  British 
force  as  a  volunteer,  and  takes  a  distinguished  share  in  the  famous 
battles  of  the  Punjaub. 


10  BOOKS  FOB  YOUNG  PEOPLE. 

BY  G. A.  HENTY 

"  No  living  writer  of  books  for  boys  writes  to  better  purpose  than  Mr.  O. 
Henty."— Philadelphia  Press. 


TRUE  TO  THE  OLD  FLAG 

A  Tale  of  the  American  War  of  Independence.  By  G.  A. 
HENTY.  With  12  full-page  Illustrations  by  GORDON 
BROWNE.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

A  graphic  and  vigorous  story  of  the  American  Revolution,  which 
paints  the  scenes  with  great  power,  and  does  full  justice  to  the  pluck 
and  determination  of  the  soldiers  during  the  unfortunate  struggle. 

THE  LION  OF  ST.  MARK 

A  Tale  of  Venice  in  the  Fourteenth  Century.  By  G.  A. 
HENTY.  With  10  full-page  Illustrations  by  GORDON 
BROWNE.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

A  story  of  Venice  at  a  period  when  her  strength  and  splendor  were 
put  to  the  severest  tests.  The  hero  displays  a  fine  sense  and  manliness 
which  carry  him  safely  through  an  atmosphere  of  intrigue,  crime,  and 
bloodshed. 

THE  LION  OF  THE  NORTH 

A  Tale  of  Gustavus  Adolphus  and  the  Wars  of  Religion. 
By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  12  full-page  illustrations  by 
JOHN  SCHONBERG.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

In  this  story  Mr.  Henty  gives  the  history  of  the  first  part  of  the 
Thirty  Years'  War.  The  issue  had  its  importance,  which  has  extended 
to  the  present  day,  as  it  established  religious  freedom  in  Germany. 
The  army  of  the  chivalrous  King  of  Sweden  was  largely  composed  of 
Scotchmen,  and  among  these  was  the  hero  of  the  story. 

IN  GREEK  WATERS 

A  Story  of  the  Grecian  War  of  Independence  (1821-1827).  By 
G.  A.  HENTY.  With  12  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  S. 
STACEY^and  a  Map.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Deals  with  the  revolt  of  the  Greeks  in  1821  against  Turkish  op- 
pression. Mr.  Beveridge  and  his  .son  Horace  fit  out  a  privateer,  load 
it  with  military  stores,  and  set  sail  for  Greece.  They  rescue  the  Chris- 
tians, relieve  the  captive  Greeks,  and  fight  the  Turkish  war  vessels. 

WITH  LEE  IN  VIRGINIA 

A  Story  of  the  American  Civil  War.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
10  full-page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BROWNE,  and  6 
Maps.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  story  of  a  young  Virginia  planter,  who  serves  under  Lee  and 
Jackson  through  the  most  exciting  events  of  the  struggle.  He  has 
many  hairbreadth  escapes,  is  several  times  wounded  and  twice  taken 
prisoner ;  but  his  courage  and  readiness  bring  him  safely  through  all 
difficulties. 


BOOKS  FOR  YOUNG  PBOPLB  11 

BY  G.  A,  HENTY 

"Mr.  Henty's  books  never  fall  to  Interest  boy  readers."— Academy. 

WITH  CLJVE  IN  INDIA 

Or,  The  Beginnings  of  an  Empire.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
12  full-page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BBOWNE,  and  a  Map. 
Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  period  between  the  landing  of  Clive  in  India  and  the  close  of  his 
career  was  eventful  in  the  extreme.  At  its  commencement  the  English 
were  traders  existing  on  sufferance  of  the  native  princes;  at  its  close  they 
were  masters  of  Bengal  and  of  the  greater  part  of  Southern  India.  The 
author  has  given  a  full  account  of  the  events  of  that  stirring  time,  while 
he  combines  with  his  narrative  a  thrilling  tale  of  daring  and  adventure. 

THE  YOUNG  CARTHAGINIAN 

A  Story  of  the  Times  of  Hannibal.  By  G.  A.  HENTT.  With 
12  full-page  Illustrations  by  C.  J.  STANTLAND,  B.I.  Grown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

There  is  no  better  field  for  romance- writers  in  the  whole  of  history  than 
the  momentous  straggle  between  the  Romans  and  Carthaginians  for  the 
empire  of  the  world.  Mr.  Henty  has  had  the  full  advantage  of  much  un- 
exhausted picturesque  and  impressive  material,  and  has  thus  been  enabled 
to  form  a  striking  historic  background  to  as  exciting  a  story  of  adventure 
as  the  keenest  appetite  could  wish. 

FOR  THE  TEMPLE 

A  Tale  of  the  Fall  of  Jerusalem.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  10 
full-page  Illustrations  by  S.  J.  SOI/OMON,  and  a  colored 
Map.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  §1.50. 

Mr.  Henty  here  weaves  into  the  record  of  Josephus  an  admirable  and 
attractive  story.  The  troubles  in  the  district  of  Tiberias,  the  march  of  the 
legions,  the  sieges  of  Jotapata,  of  Gamala,  and  of  Jerusalem,  form  the 
impressive  setting  to  the  figure  of  the  lad  who  becomes  the  leader  of  a. 
guerrilla  band  of  patriots,  fights  bravely  for  the  Temple,  and  after  a  brief 
term  of  slavery  at  Alexandria,  returns  to  his  Galilean  home. 

THROUGH  THE  FRAY 

A  Story  of  the  Luddite  Biots.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  12 
full-page  Illustrations  by  H.  M.  PAGET.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  §1.50. 

The  story  is  laid  in  Yorkshire  at  the  commencement  of  the  present  cen- 
tury, when  the  high  price  of  food  induced  by  the  war  and  the  introduction 
of  machinery  drove  the  working-classes  to  desperation,  and  caused  them 
to  band  themselves  in  that  wide-spread  organization  known  as  the  Luddite 
Society.  There  is  an  abundance  of  adventure  in  the  tale,  but  its  chief 
interest  lies  in  the  character  of  the  hero,  and  the  manner  in  which  he 
is  put  on  trial  for  his  life,  but  at  last  comes  victorious  "through  the  fray." 


12  BOOKS  FOR  YOUSG  PEOPLE 


BY  G.  A.  HENTY 

«•  The  brightest  of  all  the  living  writers  whose  office  It  Is  to  enchant  the 
boys."— Christian  Leader. 


CAPTAIN  BAYLEY'S  HEIR 

A  Tale  of  the  Gold  Fields  of  California.  By  G.  A.  HENTY. 
With  12  full-page  Illustrations  by  H.  M.  PAGET.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

A  frank,  manly  lad  and  his  cousin  are  rivals  in  the  heirship  of  a  consider- 
able property.  The  former  falls  into  a  trap  laid  by  the  latter,  and  while 
under  a  false  accusation  of  theft  foolishly  leaves  England  for  America. 
He  works  his  passage  before  the  mast,  joins  a  small  band  of  hunters, 
ciosses  a  tract  of  country  infested  with  Indians  to  the  Calif ornian  gold 
diggings,  and  is  successful  both  as  digger  and  trader. 

IN  FREEDOM'S  CAUSE 

A  Story  of  Wallace  and  Bruce.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  12 
full-page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Relates  the  stirring  tale  of  the  Scottish  War  of  Independence.  The 
hero  of  the  tale  fought  under  both  Wallace  and  Bruce,  and  while  the 
strictest  historical  accuracy  has  been  maintained  with  respect  to  public 
events,  the  work  is  full  of  "hairbreadth  'scapes"  and  wild  adventure. 

A  JACOBITE  EXILE 

Being  the  Adventures  of  a  Young  Englishman  in  the  Service 
of  Charles  XII.  of  Sweden.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  8 
full-page  Illustrations  by  PAUL  HARDY,  and  a  Map.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Sir  Marmaduke  Car«tairs,  a  Jacobite,  is  the  victim  of  a  conspiracy,  and 
he  is  denounced  as  a  plotter  against  the  life  of  King  William.  He  flies  to 
Sweden,  accompanied  by  his  son  Charlie.  This  youth  joins  the  foreign 
legion  under  Charles  XII.,  and  takes  a  distinguished  part  in  several 
famous  campaigns  against  the  Russians  and  Poles. 

CONDEMNED  AS  A  NIHILIST 

A  Story  of  Escape  from  Siberia.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  8 
full-page  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero  of  this  story  is  an  English  boy  resident  in  St.  Petersburg. 
Through  two  student  friends  he  becomes  innocently  involved  in  various 
political  plots,  resulting  in  his  seizure  by  the  Russian  police  and  his  exile 
to  Siberia.  He  ultimately  escapes,  and,  after  many  exciting  adventures, 
he  reaches  Norway,  and  thence  home,  after  a  perilous  journey  which  lasts 
nearly  two  years. 


BOOKS  FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLE 


BY  Q.  A.  HENTY 

"Mr.  Henty  is  one  of  our  most  successful  writers  of  historical  tales." 

—  Scotsman. 

IN  THE  REIGN  OF  TERROR 

The  Adventures  of  a  Westminster  Boy.  By  G.  A.  HENTY. 
With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by  J.  SCHONBEBG.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Harry  Sandwith,  a  Westminster  boy,  becomes  a  resident  at  the  chateau 
of  a  French  marquis,  and  after  various  adventures  accompanies  the 
family  to  Paris  at  the  crisis  of  the  Revolution.  Imprisonment  and  death 
reduce  their  number,  and  the  hero  finds  himself  beset  by  perils  with  the 
three  young  daughters  of  the  house  in  his  charge.  After  hair-breadth 
escapes  they  reach  Nantes.  There  the  girls  are  condemned  to  death  in 
the  coffinships,  but  are  saved  by  the  unfailing  courage  of  their  boy- 
protector. 

ST.  GEORGE  FOR  ENGLAND 

A  Tale  of  Cressy  and  Poitiers.  By  G.  A.  HEKTY,  With  8  full- 
page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BKOWNE.  Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

No  portion  of  English  history  is  more  crowded  with  great  events  than 
that  of  the  reign  of  Edward  III.  Cressy  and  Poitiers ;  the  destruction  of 
the  Spanish  fleet ;  the  plague  of  the  Black  Death ;  the  Jacquerie  rising; 
these  are  treated  by  theauthorin  "  St.  George  for  England."  The  hero  of 
the  story,  although  of  good  family,  begins  life  as  a  London  apprentice, 
but  after  countless  adventures  and  perils  becomes  by  valor  and  good 
conduct  the  squire,  and  at  last  the  trusted  friend  of  the  Black  Prince. 

A  CHAPTER  OF  ADVENTURES 

Or,  Through  the  Bombardment  of  Alexandria.  By  G.  A. 
HENTY.  With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  H.  OVEB- 
END.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

A  coast  fishing  lad,  by  an  act  of  heroism,  secures  the  interest  of  a  ship- 
owner, who  places  him  as  an  apprentice  on  board  one  of  his  ships.  In 
company  with  two  of  his  fellow-apprentices  he  is  left  behind,  at  Alex- 
andria, in  the  hands  of  the  revolted  Egyptian  troops,  and  is  present 
through  the  bombardment  and  the  scenes  of  riot  and  blood-shed  which 
accompanied  it. 

HELD  FAST  FOR  ENGLAND 

A  Tale  of  the  Siege  of  Gibraltar.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  GOBDON  BBOWNE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

This  story  deals  with  one  of  the  most  memorable  sieges  in  history— 
the  siege  of  Gibraltar  in  1779-83  by  the  united  forces  of  France  and 
Spain.    With  land  forces,  fleets,  and  floating  batteries,  the  combined 
sources  of  two  fjreat  nations,  this  grim  fortress  was  vainly  besieged  an< 
bombarded.     The  hero  of  the  tale,  an  English  lad  resident  in  C 
takes  a  brave  and  worthy  part  in  the  long  defence,  and  it  is  throng! 
varied  experiences  that  we  learn  with  what  bravery,  resource,  and  te- 
nacity the  Rock  was  h«ld  for  England. 


14  BOOKS  FOR  YOUNQ  PEOPLR 

BY  G.  A.  HENTY 

"  Among  writers  of  stories  of  adventures  for  boys  Mr.  Henty  stands  in  the 
very  first  rank." — Academy.  

FOR  NAME  AND  FAME 

Or,  Through  Afghan  Passes.  By  G.  A,  HENTY.  With  8  full- 
page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

An  interesting  story  of  the  last  war  in  Afghanistan.  The  hero,  after 
being  wrecked  and  going  through  many  stirring  adventures  among  the 
Malays,  finds  his  way  to  Calcutta  and  enlists  in  a  regiment  proceeding  to 
join  the  army  at  the  Afghan  passes.  He  accompanies  the  force  under 
General  Roberts  to  the  Peiwar  Kotal,  is  wounded,  taken  prisoner,  carried 
to  Cabul,  whence  he  is  transferred  to  Candahar,  and  takes  part  in  the 
final  defeat  of  the  army  of  Ayoub  Khan. 

ORANGE  AND  GREEN 

A  Tale  of  the  Boyne  and  Limerick.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  record  of  two  typical  families — the  Davenants,  who,  having  come 
over  with  Strongbow,  had  allied  themselves  in  feeling  to  the  original  in- 
habitants ;  and  the  Whitefoots,  who  had  been  placed  by  Cromwell  over 
certain  domains  of  the  Davenants.  In  the  children  the  spirit  of  conten- 
tion has  given  place  to  friendship,  and  though  they  take  opposite  sides 
in  the  struggle  between  James  and  William,  their  good-will  and  mutual 
service  are  never  interrupted,  and  in  the  end  the  Davenants  come  hap- 
pily to  their  own  again. 

MAORI  AND  SETTLER 

A  Story  of  the  New  Zealand  War.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  ALFRED  PEARSE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  Renshaws  emigrate  to  New  Zealand  during  the  period  of  the  war 
with  the  natives.  Wilfrid,  a  strong,  self-reliant,  courageous  lad,  is  the 
mainstay  of  the  household.  He  has  for  his  friend  Mr.  Atherton,  a  botan- 
ist and  naturalist  of  herculean  stt  ength  and  unfailing  nerve  and  humor. 
In  the  adventures  among  the  Maoris,  there  are  many  breathless  moments 
in  which  the  odds  seem  hopelessly  against  the  party,  but  they  succeed  in 
establishing  themselves  happily  in  one  of  the  pleasant  New  Zealand 
valleys. 

A  FINAL  RECKONING 

A  Tale  of  Bush  Life  in  Australia.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  B.  WOLLEN.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero,  a  young  English  lad,  after  rather  a  stormy  boyhood,  emi- 
grates to  Australia  and  gets  employment  as  an  officer  in  the  mounted 
police.  A  few  years  of  active  work  on  the  frontier,  where  he  has  many  a 
brush  with  both  natives  and  bush-rangers,  gain  him  promotion  to  a  cap- 
taincy, and  he  eventually  settles  down  to  the  peaceful  life  of  a  squatter. 


BOOKS  FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLTS  15 

BY  G.  A.  HENTY 

"Mr.  Henty'B  books  are  welcome  visitors  In  the  home  circle."— Daily  News. 

THE  BRAVEST  OF  THE  BRAVE 

Or,  With  Peterborough  in  Spain.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  H.  M.  PAGET.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

There  are  few  great  leaders  whose  lives  and  actions  have  so  completely 
fallen  into  oblivion  as  those  of  the  Earl  of  Peterborough.  This  is  largely 
due  to  the  fact  that  they  were  overshadowed  by  the  glory  and  successes 
of  Marlborough.  His  career  as  General  extended  over  little  more  than 
a  year,  and  yet,  in  that  time,  he  showed  a  genius  for  warfare  which  has 
never  been  surpassed. 

THE  DRAGON  AND  THE  RAVEN 

Or,  The  Days  of  King  Alfred.  By  G.  A.  HENTY..  With  8  full- 
page  Illustrations  by  C.  J.  STANILAND,  B.I.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

In  this  story  the  author  gives  an  account  of  the  fierce  struggle 
between  Saxon  and  Dane  for  supremacy  in  England,  and  presents  a  vivid 
picture  of  the  misery  and  ruin  to  which  the  country  was  reduced  by  the 
ravages  of  the  sea-wolves.  The  hero,  a  young  Saxon  thane,  takes  part  in 
all  the  battles  fought  by  King  Alfred.  He  is  driven  from  his  home,  takes 
to  the  sea,  and  resists  the  Danes  on  their  own  element,  and  being  pursued 
by  them  up  the  Seine,  is  present  at  the  long  and  desperate  siege  of  Paris. 

FACING  DEATH 

Or,  The  Hero  of  the  Vaughan  Pit.  A  Tale  of  the  Coal  Mines. 
By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by 
GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

"  Facing  Death  "  is  a  story  with  a  purpose.  It  is  intended  to  show  that 
a  lad  who  makes  up  his  mind  firmly  and  resolutely  that  he  will  rise  in 
life,  and  who  is  prepared  to  face  toil  and  ridicule  and  hardship  to  carry 
out  his  determination,  is  sure  to  succeed.  The  hero  of  the  story  is  a 
typical  British  boy,  dogged,  earnest,  generous,  and  though  "shamefaced" 
to  a  degree,  is  ready  to  face  death  in  the  discharge  of  duty. 

BY  SHEER  PLUCK 

A  Tale  of  the  Ashanti  War.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  8  full- 
page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  author  has  woven,  in  a  tale  of  thrilling  interest,  all  the  details  of 
the  Ashanti  campaign,  of  which  he  was  himself  a  witness.  His  hero, 
after  many  exciting  adventures  in  the  interior,  is  detained  a  prisoner  by 
the  king  just  before  the  outbreak  of  the  war,  but  escapes,  and  accom- 
panies the  English  expedition  on  their  march  to  Coomwsie. 


16  BOOKS  FOR  TOUtfQ  PKOFLE 

BY  G.  A,  HENTY 

"  Mr.  Henty  might  with  entire  propriety  be  called  the  boys'  Sir  Waiter 
Scott."— PMladelphia  Press. 


THE  CAT  OF  BUBASTES 

A  Story  of  Ancient  Egypt.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  8  full- 
page  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

A  story  which  will  give  young  readers  an  unsurpassed  insight  into  the 
customs  of  the  Egyptian  people.  Amuba,  a  prince  of  the  Rebu  nation,  is 
carried  with  his  charioteer  Jethro  into  slavery.  They  become  inmates  of 
the  house  of  Ameres,  the  Egyptian  high-priest,  and  are  happy  in  his 
service  until  the  priest's  son  accidentally  kills  the  sacred  cat  of  Bubastes. 
In  an  outburst  of  popular  fury  Amerce  is  killed,  and  it  rests  with  Jethro 
aud  Amuba  to  secure  the  escape  of  the  high-priest's  son  and  daughter. 

ONE  OF  THE  28™ 

A  Tale  of  Waterloo.  By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  8  full-page  Il- 
lustrations by  W.  H.  OVEBEND,  and  2  Maps.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero  of  this  story,  Ralph  Conway,  has  many  varied  and  exciting 
adventures.  He  enters  the  army,  and  after  some  rough  service  in  Ire- 
land takes  part  in  the  Waterloo  campaign,  from  which  he  returns  with 
the  loss  of  an  arm,  but  with  a  substantial  fortune. 

STURDY  AND  STRONG 

Or,  How  George  Andrews  made  his  Way.  By  G.  A.  HENTY. 
With  4  full-page  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

The  history  of  a  hero  of  everyday  life,  whose  love  of  truth,  clothing 
of  modesty,  and  innate  pluck,  carry  him,  naturally,  from  poverty  to  af- 
fluence. George  Andrews  is  an  example  of  character  with  nothing  to 
cavil  at,  and  stands  as  a  good  instance  of  chivalry  in  domestic  life. 

TALES  OF  DARING  AND  DANGER 

By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  2  full-page  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo,  75  cents. 

Containing  five  stories,  varied  in  scene  and  character,  but  all  of  ad- 
venturous interest  and  telling  of  youthful  heroism  under  dangerous  and 
trying  circumstances  on  l^id  and  on  sea. 

YARNS  ON  THE  BEACH 

By  G.  A.  HENTY.  With  2  full-page  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo,  75  cents. 

This  book  should  find  special  favor  among  boys.  The  yarns  are  spun 
by  old  sailors,  and  are  admirably  calculated  to  foster  a  manly  spirit. 


BOOKS  FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLE 


BY  ROBERT  LEIGHTON 

"  Mr.  Leighton's  place  Is  in  the  front  rank  of  writers  of  boys'  books." 

_  —Standard 

THE  GOLDEN  GALLEON 

Illustrated,  crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

This  is  a  story  of  Queen  Elizabeth's  time,  just  after  the  defeat  of  the 
Spanish  Armada.  Mr.  Leighton  introduces  in  his  work  the  great  sea- 
fighters  of  Plymouth  town  —  Hawkins,  Drake,  Raleigh,  and  Richard 
Grenville. 

OLAF  THE  GLORIOUS 

By  EGBERT  LEIGHTON.     With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by 

RALPH  PEACOCK.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 
This  story  of  Olaf,  King  of  Norway,  opens  with  his  being  found  living 
as  a  bond-slave  in  Esthonia,  and  follows  him  through  his  romantic  youth 
in  Russia.  Then  come  his  adventures  as  a  Viking,  his  raids  upon  the 
coasts  of  Scotland  and  England,  and  his  conversion  to  Christianity.  He 
returns  to  Norway  as  king,  and  converts  his  people  to  the  Christian 
faith. 

WRECK  OF  "THE  GOLDEN  FLEECE" 

The  Story  of  a  North  Sea  Fisher-boy.  By  ROBERT  LEIGHTON. 
With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by  FRANK  BRANGWYN. 
Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero  is  a  parson's  son  who  is  apprenticed  on  board  a  Lowestoft 
fishing  lugger.  The  lad  suffers  many  buffets  from  his  shipmates,  while 
the  storms  and  dangers  which  he  braved  are  set  forth  with  intense  power. 

THE  THIRSTY  SWORD 

A  Story  of  the  Norse  Invasion  of  Scotland  (1262-63).  By 
ROBERT  LEIGHTON.  With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by 
ALFRED  PEARSE,  and  a  Map.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges, 
$1.50. 

This  story  tells  how  Roderic  MacAlpin,  the  sea-rover,  came  to  the  Isle 
of  Bute  ;  how  he  slew  his  brother  in  Rothesay  Castle  ;  how  the  earl's 
eldest  son  was  likewise  slain  ;  how  young  Kenric  now  became  king  of 
Bute,  and  vowed  vengeance  against  the  slayer  of  his  brother  and  father  ; 
and  finally,  how  this  vow  was  kept,  when  Kenric  and  the  murderous 
sea-rover  met  at  midnight  and  ended  their  feud  in  one  last  great  fight. 

THE  PILOTS  OF  POMONA 

A  Story  of  the  Orkney  Islands.     By  ROBERT  LEIGHTON.    With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  JOHN  LEIGHTON,  and  a  Map. 
Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 
Halcro  Ericson,  the  hero,  happens  upon  many  exciting  adventures  and 

hardy  experiences,  through  which  he  carries  himself  with  quiet  courage. 

The  story  gives  a  vivid  presentation  of  life  in  these  far  northern  islands. 


18  BOOK?  FOR  FOFAV  PEOPLE 


BY  PROFESSOR  A.  J.  CHURCH 


LORDS  OF  THE  WORLD 

A  Story  of  the  Fall  of  Carthage  and  Corinth.  By  Professor 
A.  J.  CHURCH.  "With  12  full-page  Illustrations  by  RALPH 
PEACOCK.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  §1.50. 

The  scene  of  this  story  centres  in  the  destruction  of  Carthage  by  the 
Romans.  The  young  hero  is  captured  by  the  Romans,  but  wearing  the 
dress  of  his  frwin  sister,  escapes  death.  Entering  the  army  ofc  Carthage 
he  is  in  the  thick  of  the  long  conflict  and  passes  through  many  thrilling 
adventures.  He  is  present  at  the  final  scene,  and  that  awful  catastrophe 
is  most  vividly  told.  The  story  is  full  of  valuable  historical  details  and 
the  interest  never  flags. 

TWO  THOUSAND  YEARS  AGO 

Or,  The  Adventures  of  a  Roman  Boy.     By  Professor  A.  J. 

CHUKCH.       With   12   full-page  Illustrations  by  ADRIEN 

MARIE.     Crown  8vo,  divine  edges,  31.50. 

The  hero  is  a  young  Roman  who  has  a  very  chequered  career,  being 
now  a  captive  in  the  hands  of  Spartacns,  again  an  officer  on  board  a 
vessel  detailed  for  the  suppression  of  the  pirates,  and  anon  a  captive 
once  more,  on  a  pirate  ship. 

BYS.  BARING-COULD 


GRETTIR  THE  OUTLAW 

A  Story  of  Iceland.  By  S.  BARING-GOTTLD.  With  10  full- 
page  Illustrations  by  M.  ZEXO  DIEMEB,  and  a  Colored 
Map.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  81.50. 

No  boy  will  be  able  to  withstand  the  magic  of  such  scenes  as  the  fight 
of  Grettir  with  twelve  bearserks,  and  the  wrestle  with  Karr  the  Old  in 
the  chamber  of  the  dead. 


BY  F.  FRANKFORT  MOORE 


HIGHWAYS  AND  HIGH  SEAS 

Cyril    Harley's   Adventures    on    Both.       By  F.   FRANKFORT 
MOORE.   With  8  full -page  Illustrations  by  ALFRED  PEARSE. 
Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  ^l.CO. 
The   story  belongs  to  a  period  when  highways  meant  post-chaises, 

coaches,  and  highwaymen,  and  when  high  teas  meant  privateers  and 

smugglers. 

UNDER  HATCHES 

Or,  Ned  Woodthorpe's  Adventures.  By  F.  FRANKFORT  MOORE. 
With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by  A.  FORESTTER.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  61.50. 

In  rescuing  another  lad  from  drowning,  Ned  Woodthorpe  is  taken  on 
board  a  convict  ?hip.  After  a  series  of  exciting  events  the  convicts  and 
crew  obtain  the  mastery.  Ultimately  the  ship  is  recaptured  and  Ned 
and  his  friends  escape  from  their  troubles. 


BOOKS   FOR    rOUXGt   PEOrLB  19 


BY  KIRK  MUNROE 


MIDSHIPMAN  STUART 

Or,  the  Last  Cruise  of  the  Essex.    A  Tale  of  the  War  of 
1812.     Illustrated.     12mo,  $1.25 

IN  PIRATE  WATERS 

A  Tale  of  the  American  Navy.      Illustrated  by  I.  W. 

TABER.     12mo,  $1.25. 

The  hero  of  the  story  becomes  a  midshipman  in  the  navy  just  at 
the  time  of  the  war  with  Tripoli.  His  own  wild  adventures  among 
the  Turks  and  his  love  romance  are  thoroughly  interwoven  with  the 
stirring  history  of  that  time. 

THE    "WHITE    CONQUERORS"    SERIES 

WITH  CROCKETT  AND  BOWIE 

Or,  Fighting  for  the  Lone  Star  Flag.      A  Tale  of  Texas. 

With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by  VICTOR  PERARD. 

Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

The  story  is  of  the  Texas  revolution  in  1835,  when  American  Texans 
under  Sam  Houston,  Bowie,  Crockett  and  Travis,  fought  for  relief 
from  the  intolerable  tyranny  of  the  Mexican  Santa  Ana.  The  hero, 
Rex  Hardin,  son  of  a  Texan  ranchman  and  graduate  of  an  American 
military  school,  takes  a  prominent  part  in  the  heroic  defense  of  the 
Alamo,  and  the  final  triumph  at  San  Jacinto. 

THROUGH  SWAMP  AND  GLADE 

A  Tale  of  the  Seminole  War.     By  KIRK  MUNROE.    With  8 
full-page  Illustrations  by  V.  PERARD.  Crown8vo,$1.25. 

Coacoochee,  the  hero  of  the  story,  is  the  son  of  Philip  the  chieftain 
of  the  Seminoles.  He  grows  up  to  lead  his  tribe  in  the  long  struggle 
which  resulted  in  the  Indians  being  driven  from  the  north  of  Florida 
down  to  the  distant  southern  wilderness. 

AT  WAR  WITH  TONTIAC 

Or,  The  Totem  of  the  Bear.     A  Tale  of  Redcoat  and  Red- 
skin.   By  KIRK  MUNROE.    With  8  full-page  Illustra- 
tions by  J.  FINNEMORE.     Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 
A  story  when  the  shores  of  Lake  Erie  were  held  by  hostile  Indians. 
The  hero,  Donald  Hester,  goes  in  search  of  his  sister  Edith,  who  has 
been  captured  by  th«  Indians.     Strange  and  terrible  are  his  experi- 
ences ;  for  ne  Is  wounded,  taken  prisoner,  condemned  to  be  burned,  but 
contrives  to  escape.     In  the  end  all  things  terminate  happily. 

THE  WHITE  CONQUERORS 

A  Tale  of  Toltec  and  Aztec.     By  KIRK  MUNROE.    With  8 

full-page  Illustrations.     Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 
This  story  deals  with  the  Conquest  of  Mexico  by  Cortes  and  his 
Spaniards,  the  "White  Conquerors,"  who,  after  many  deeds  of  valor, 
pushed  their  way  into  the  great  Azfeec  kingdom  and  established  their 
power  in  the  wondrous  city  where  Montezuma  reigned  in  splendor. 


20  BOOKS  FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLE 


BY  DR.  GORDON  STABLES 


COURAGE  TRUE  HEART 

A  Brilliant  New  Story  of  Danger  and  Daring  on  the  Sea.  By 
GORDON  STABILES,  M.D.,  C.M.  Illustrated,  crown  8vo, 
$1.25. 

A  NAVAL  CADET 

A  Story  of  Adventure  by  Sea.  By  GOKDON  STABLES,  M.D., 
C.M.  Illustrated,  crown  8vo,  31.25. 

FOR  LIFE  AND  LIBERTY 

A  Story  of  Battle  by  Land  and  Sea.  By  GOKDON  STABLES, 
M.D.,  C.M.  With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by  SIDNEY 
PAGET.  12mo.  $1.50. 

The  story  of  an  English  boy  who  runs  from  home  and  joins  the  south- 
ern army  in  the  late  Civil  War.  His  chum  enters  the  navy,  and  their 
various  adventures  are  set  forth  with  great  vigor  and  interest. 

TO  GREENLAND  AND  THE  POLE 

A  Story  of  Adventure  in  the  Arctic  Regions.  By  GORDON 
STABLES,  M.D.,  C.M.  With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by 
G.  C.  HINDLEY,  and  a  Map.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges, 
$1.50. 

The  author  is  himself  an  old  Arctic  voyager,  and  he  deals  with  deer- 
hunting  in  Norway,  sealing  in  the  Arctic  Seas,  bear-stalking  on  the 
ice-floes,  the  hardships  of  a  journey  across  Greenland,  and  a  successful 
voyage  to  the  back  of  the  North  Pole. 

WESTWARD  WITH  COLUMBUS 

By  GOKDON  STABLES,  M.D.,  C.M.  With  8  full-page  Illustra- 
tions by  ALFRED  PEAKSE.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  hero  of  this  story  is  Columbus  himself.  His  career  is  traced  from 
boyhood  onward  through  the  many  hazardous  enterprises  in  which  he 
was  at  various  times  engaged.  The  narrative  deals  chiefly,  however, 
with  the  great  naval  venture  which  resulted  in  the  discovery  of  the 
American  continent. 

TWDCT  SCHOOL  AND  COLLEGE 

A  Tale  of  Self-reliance.  By  GORDON  STABLES,  M.D.,  C.M. 
With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  PARKINSON.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 


BOOKS  FOR  TOUXQ  PEOPLE  21 

BY  HARRY  COLLINQWOOD 

THE  LOG  OF  A  PRIVATEERSMAN 

By  HARRY  COLLINGWOOD.     With  12  full -page  Illustrations  by 

W.  RAINEY,  R.I.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  §1.50. 
In  the  war  between  Napoleon  and  the  British,  many  privateers  were 
sent  out  from  England  to  seize  and  destroy  the  French  merchant  vessels. 
On  one  of  these  George  Bowen  went  as  second  mate.  Long  distance 
duels  at  sea,  fights  at  close  quarters,  fierce  boarding  attacks,  capture  and 
recapture,  flight  and  pursuit,  storm  and  wreck,  fire  at  sea  and  daj  s  with- 
out food  or  water  in  a  small  boat  on  the  ocean,  are  some  of  the  many 
thrilling  experiences  our  hero  passed  through. 

THE  LOG  OF  "THE  FLYING  FISH" 

A  Story  of  Aerial  and  Submarine  Peril  and  Adventure.     By 
HARRY  COLLINGWOOD.     With  12  full-page  Illustrations  by 
GORDON  BROWNE.     Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 
In  this  story  the  aim  of  the  author  has  been,  not  only  to  interest  and 

amuse,  but  also  to  stimulate  a  taste  for  scientific  study. 

THE  MISSING  MERCHANTMAN. 

By  HARRY  COLLINGWOOD.  With  6  full-page  Pictures  by  W. 
H.  OVEREND.  Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

A  fine  Australian  clipper  is  seized  by  the  crew ;  the  passengers  are 
landed  on  one  deserted  island,  the  captain  and  a  junior  officer  on  another  ; 
and  the  young  hero  of  the  story  is  kept  on  board  to  navigate  the  ship, 
which  the  mutineers  refit  as  a  private  vessel.  After  many  adventures 
Ned  succeeded  in  carrying  off  the  ship,  and  in  picking  up  the  captain 
and  the  passengers. 

THE  CONGO  ROVERS 

A  Tale  of  the  Slave  Squadron.  By  HARRY  COLLINGWOOD. 
With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by  J.  SCHONBERG.  Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

The  scene  of  this  thrilling  tale  is  laid  on  the  west  coast  of  Africa 
among  the  slavers. 

THE  ROVER'S  SECRET 

A  Tale  of  the  Pirate  Cays  and  Lagoons  of  Cuba.     By  HABRY 
COLLINGWOOD.     With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  C. 
SYMONS.     Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 
The  hero  of  "  The  Rover's  Secret,"  a  young  officer  of  the  British  navy, 

narrates  his  peculiar  experiences  in  childhood  and  his  subsequent  perils 

and  achievements. 

THE  PIRATE  ISLAND 

A  Story  of  the   South  Pacific.      By  HARRY  COLLINGWOOD. 
Illustrated  by  8  full-page  Pictures  by  C.  J.  STANILAND 
and  J.  R.  WELLS.     Olivine  edges.    Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 
This  story  details  the  adventures  of  a  lad  who  was  found  in  his  infancy 
on  board  a  wreck,   and  is  adopted  by  a  fisherman.     Going  to  sea,  he 
forms  one  of  a  party  who,  after  being  burned   out  of  their  ship,  are 
picked  up  by  a  pirate  brig  and  taken  to  the  "Pirate  Island,"  where 
they  have  many  thrilling  adventures. 


23  BOOKS  FOR  TOUNO  PEOPLE 

BY  GEORGE  MANVILLE  FENN 
"Mr.  Perm  is  in  the  front  rank  of  writers  for  boys."— Liverpool  Jlercury. 


DICK  O'  THE  FENS 

A  Romance  of  the  Great  East  Swamp.  With  12  full-page 
Illustrations  by  FRANK  DADD.  Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

BROWNSMITH'S  BOY 

With  6  page  Illustrations.     Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

YUSSUF  THE  GUIDE 

Being  the  Strange  Story  of  Travels  in  Asia  Minor.  Witt 
8  full  page  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

THE  GOLDEN  MAGNET 

A  Tale  of  the  Land  of  the  Incas.  With  12  full-page  Pic- 
tures by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

NAT  THE  NATURALIST 

A  Boy's  Adventures  in  the  Eastern  Seas.  Illustrated  by  8 
full-page  Pictures  by  GEORGE  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo, 
oli  vine  edges,  $1.50. 

QUICKSILVER 

Or,  A  Boy  with  no  Skid  to  his  Wheel.  With  10  full-page 
Illustrations  by  FRANK  DADD.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

DEVON  BOYS 

A  Tale  of  the  North  Shore.  With  12  full-page  Illustra- 
tions by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

MOTHER  CAREY'S  CHICKEN 

Her  Voyage  to  the  Unknown  Isle.  With  8  full-page  Illus- 
trations. Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

BUNYIP  LAND 

The  Story  of  a  Wild  Journey  in  New  Guinea.  With  6 
full-page  Illustrations  by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown 
8vo,  $1.25. 

IN  THE  KING'S  NAME 

Or,  The  Cruise  of  the  Kestrel.  Illustrated  by  12  full -page 
Pictures  by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

MENHARDOC 

A  Story  of  Cornish  Nets  and  Mines.  With  6  full -page 
Illustrations  by  C.  J.  STANILAND.  Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

PATIENCE  WINS 

Or,  War  in  the  Works.  With  6  full-page  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 


BOOKS  FOR  TO  UNO  PEOPLE.  23 


STORIES  OF  ADVENTURE  BY  SEA  AND  LAND 


PARIS  AT  BAY 

A  Story  of  the  Siege  and  the  Commune.  By  HERBERT 
HAYENS.  With  8  full-page  Illustrations  by  STANLEY 
L.  WOOD.  Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

THE  TURKISH  AUTOMATON 

A  Tale  of  the  Time  of  Catharine  the  Great  of  Russia.  By 
SHEILA  E.  BRAINE.  With  6  full-page  Illustratioas  by 
WILLIAM  RAINEY,  R.  I.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

A  MYSTERY  OF  THE  PACIFIC 

By  OLIPHANT  SMEATON.  With  8  Illustrations  by  WAL 
PAGET.  12mo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

GOLD,  GOLD,  IN  CARIBOO 

A  Story  of  Adventure  in  British  Columbia.  By  OLIVE 
PHILLIPPS  -WoLLET.  With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by 
G.  C.  HINDLEY.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

HIS  FIRST  KANGAROO 

An  Australian  Story  for  Boys.  By  ARTHUR  FEERES.  With  6 
Illustrations  by  P,  B.  S.  SPENER.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

A  CHAMPION  OF  THE  FAITH 

A  Tale  of  Prince  Hal  and  the  Lollards.  By  J.  M.  CALLWEUI. 
With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  HERBERT  J.  DBAPEB. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

This  story  deals  with  the  merry  escapades  of  Prince  Hal  and  his  favor- 
ite, Sir  John  Oldcastle.  Then  the  narrative  deepens  when  the  Prince 
ascends  the  throne  as  Henry  V.,  while  his  old  comrade  becomes  a  Lollard 
and  a  champion  of  the  new  faith.  As  such,  Sir  John  Oldcastle  endures 
many  hardships,  but  finally  is  captured  by  treachery  and  burnt  at  the 
stake. 

THE  WIGWAM  AND  THE  WAR-PATH 

Stories  of  the  Red  Indians.     By  ASCOTT  R.  HOPE.     Illustrated 

by  GORDON  BROWNE.     Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

"Mr.  Hope's  '  Wigwam  and  War-path'  is  notably  good ;  it  gives  a  very 
vivid  picture  of  life  among  the  Indians." — Spectator. 

THE  SEVEN  WISE  SCHOLARS 

By  ASCOTT  R.  HOPE.  .Illustrated  by  GORDON  BROWNE.  Square 
8vo,  $1.50. 

YOUNG  TRAVELLERS'  TALES 

By  ASCOTT  R.  HOPE.  With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  H.  J. 
DRAPER.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 


BoOKS  FOR  TOUyO  PEOPLE 


STORIES  OF  ADVENTURE  BY  SEA  AND  LAND 


WULFRIC  THE  WEAPON  THANE 

The  Story  of  the  Danish  Conquest  of  East  Anglia.  By  CHARLES 
W.  WHISTLER.  With  6  illustrations  by  W.  H.  MARGETSON. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

A  tale  In  which  Is  set  forth :— How  Wulfric  saved  the  Danish  warrior's  life ; 
how  he  fonght  In  the  Viking  ship ;  how  he  was  accused  falsely ;  how  he  joined 
King  Eadmund,  as  his  weapon-tbane ;  how  he  fonght  for  the  king;  and  how 
he  won  the  lady  Osritha  and  brought  her  to  bis  home. 

TOMMY  THE  ADVENTUROUS 

The  Story  of  a  Brother  and  Sister.  By  S.  E.  CARTWRIGHT.  With 
3  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

THORNDYKE  MANOR 

A  Tale  of  Jacobite  Times.  By  MARY  C.  ROWSELL.  With  6  full- 
page  Illustrations  by  L.  LESLIE  BROOKE.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

Thorndyke  Manor  Is  an  old  house  near  the  mouth  of  the  Thames  which  is 
convenient,  on  account  of  its  secret  vaults  and  situation,  as  the  basis  of  opera- 
tion in  a  Jacobite  conspiracy.  Its  owner  finds  himself  suddenly  Involved  in 
the  closest  meshes  of  the  plot.  He  Is  conveyed  to  the  Tower,  but  his  inno- 
cence is  triumphantly  proved  by  his  sister. 

TRAITOR  OR  PATRIOT 

A  Tale  of  the  Rye-House  Plot.  By  MARY  C.  ROWSELL.  With  6 
full-page  Pictures.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

"A  romantic  love  episode,  whose  true  characters  are  life-like  beings,  not 
dry  sticks,  as  in  many  historical  tales."— Graphic. 

HAL  HUNGERFORD 

Or,  The  Strange  Adventures  of  a  Boy  Emigrant.  By  J.  R.  HUTCH- 
INSON.  With  4  full-page  Illustrations  by  STANLEY  BERKELEY. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

"  There  is  no  question  whatever  as  to  the  spirited  manner  In  which  the  story 
is  told ;  the  death  of  the  mate  of  the  smuggler  by  the  teeth  of  the  dog  is  espe- 
cially effective."— London  Spectator. 

SIR  WALTER'S  WARD 

A  Tale  of  the  Crusades.  By  WILLIAM  EVERARD.  Illustrated  by 
WALTER  PAGET.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

••  A  highly  fascinating  work,  dealing  with  a  period  which  is  always  sugges- 
tive of  romance  and  deeds  of  daring."— Schoolmaster. 

COUSIN  GEOFFREY  AND  I 

By  CAROLINE  AUSTIN.  With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  W. 
PARKINSON.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

The  only  daughter  of  a  country  gentleman  finds  herself  unprovided  for  at 
her  father's  death,  and  for  some  time  lives  as  a  dependent.  She  finally  makes 
a  brave  attempt  to  earn  her  own  livelihood,  and  she  succeeds  in  doing  this. 

HUGH  HERBERT'S  INHERITANCE 

By  CAROLINE  AUSTIN.  With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  C.  T. 
GARLAND.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

"  A  story  that  teaches  patience  as  well  as  courage  in  fighting  the  battles  of 
life."— Daily  Chronicle. 


BOOKS  FOR  YOUXQ  PEOPLB  35 


STORIES  OF  ADVENTURE  BY  SEA  AND  LAND. 


FIGHTING  THE  MATABELE 

By  J.  CHALMERS.  "With  6  Illustrations  by  Stanley  L.  "Wood. 
12mo,  $1.25. 

A  STOUT  ENGLISH  BOWMAN 

Being  a  Story  of  Chivalry  in  the  Days  of  Henry  HI.  By 
EDOAR  PICKERING.  With  6  Illustrations.  Price,  81.25. 

IN  PRESS-GANG  DAYS 

By  EDGAR  PICKERING.  With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  W. 
S.  STACEY  Crown  8vo,  81.25. 

AN  OLD-TIME  YARN 

Wherein  is  set  forth  Divers  Desperate  Mischances  which 
Befell  Anthony  Ingram  and  his  shipmates  in  the  West 
Indies  and  Mexico  with  Hawkins  and  Drake.  By  EDGAR 
PICKERING.  Illustrated  with  6  full-page  Pictures  drawn 
by  A:LFRED  PEARSE.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

SILAS  VERNEY 

A  Tale  of  the  Time  of  Charles  II.  By  EDGAR  PICKERING. 
With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  ALFRED  PEARSE.  Crown 
8vo,  $1.25. 

AN  OCEAN  OUTLAW 

A  Story  of  Adventure  in  the  good  ship  Margaret.    By  HUGH 
ST.  LEGER.     With  6  page  Illustrations  by  WM.  KATNEY, 
E.I.     Crown  8vo,  §1.25. 
This  is  a  breezy  sea-yarn  in  which  the  reader  is  made  acquainted  with 

Jimmy  Ducks,  a  tip-top  sailor-man  and  a  hero  at  cutlass  work, "£.£," 

bis  cleverness  was  needed  when  he  and  his  messmates  came  to  tackle 

the  Ocean  Outlaw. 

THE  LOSS  OF  JOHN  HUMBLE 

What  Led  to  It,  and  what  Came  of  It.  By  G.  NORWAY.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  JOHN  SCHONBERG.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

HUSSEIN  THE  HOSTAGE 

Or,  A  Boy's  Adventures  in  Persia.  By  G.  NORWAY.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  JOHN  SCHONBERG.  Crown  8vo, 
olivine  edges,  §1.50. 

A  PRISONER  OF  WAR 

A  Story  of  the  Time  of  Napoleon  Bonaparte.  By  G.  NORWAY. 
With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  ROBERT  BAENES, 
A.B..W.S.  Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 


BOOKS  FOB  YOUXG  PEOPLE 


STORIES  OF  ADVENTURE  BY  SEA  AND  LAND 

SOU'WESTER  AND  SWORD 

By  HUGH  ST.  LEQER.  With  6  full-page  Illustrations  l>y 
HAL  HURST.  Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

WITH  THE  SEA  KINGS 

A  Story  of  the  Days  of  Lord  Nelson.  By  F.  H.  WINDER. 
With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  W.  S.  STACKY. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

THE  CAPTURED  CRUISER 

Or,  Two  Years  from  Land.    By  C.  J.  HYNE,    With  6  fitll- 
page  Illustrations  by  F.  BRANQWYN.   Crown  8vo  $1.25. 
This  realistic  story  of  modern  naval  •warfare  deals  with  the  capture, 
during  the  recent  war  between  Chili  and  Peru,  of  an  armed  cruiser. 


"  HALLOWE'EN  »  AHOY  1 
Or,   Lost   on  the  Orozet  Is- 
lands. By  HUGH  ST.  LEQEB. 
With  6  page  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo,  §1.50. 

REEFER  AND  RIFLEMAN 
A  Tale  of  the  Two  Services. 
By  J.  PERCY  GROVES.   Illus- 
trated.     Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

THE  SEARCH  FOR  THE 

TALISMAN 
A  Tale   of   Labrador.       By 

HENRY  FRITH.    Illustrated. 

Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

FAMOUS  DISCOVERIES  BY 

SEA  AND  LAND 
Illustrated.  Crown  8vo,  81.00. 

STORIES  OF  THE  SEA  IN 

FORMER  DAYS 
Narratives  of  Wreck  and  Bes- 

cue.     Illustrated.     Crown 

8vo,  $1.00. 


FROM   THE   CLYDE   TO 

THE  JORDAN 
By  HUGH  CADLAN.    With  30 

Illustrations  and    a    Map. 

Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

UNDER  THE  BLACK 

EAGLE 

By  ANDREW  BILLIARD.  Illus- 
trated. Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

JACK  OLANTHORN 
A  Tale   of   Adventure.     By 
HENRY  FRITH.    Illustrated. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

THE  WAR  OF  THE  AXE 

Or,  Adventures  in  South  Af- 
rica. By  J.  PERCY  GROVES. 
Illustrated.  Crown  8vo, 
$1.00. 

TALES  OF  CAPTIVITY 

AND  EXILE 

By  W.  B.  FORTESCUE.  Illus- 
trated. Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 


HISTORICAL  STORIES 


A  THANE  OF  WESSEX 

Being  a  Story  of  the  Great 
Viking  Raids  into  Somerset. 
By  CHARLES  W.  WHISTLER. 
Illustrated.  Crown  8vo, 
81.25. 


TWO  GALLANT   REBELS 

A  Story  of  the  Great  Struggle 
of  La  Vendee.  By  EDGAR 
PICKERING.  Illustrated. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 


BOOKS  FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLE  37 

BY  CARTON  MOORE  PARK 

A  BOOK  OF  BIRDS 

Profusely  Illustrated  with  full-page  plates,  vignettes,  cover 
design,  &c.,  &c.  Demy  4to  (13  inches  by  10  inches), 
$2.00. 

The  great  success  which  Mr.  Park  made  In  his  Alphabet  of  Animals 
is  repeated  in  this  book  of  remarkable  and  highly  artistic  drawings 
of  birds.  No  artist  has  caught  more  thoroughly  the  individualities 
of  the  bird  world,  or  has  reproduced  them  with  more  life-like  vivacity 

AN  ALPHABET  OF  ANIMALS 

With  26  full-page  Plates,  a  large  number  of  vignettes  and 
cover  design  by  CARTON  MOORE  PARK.  Demy  4to  (13 
inches  by  10  inches),  $2.00. 

A  strikingly  artistic  alphabet  book.  Mr.  Park's  drawings  are 
marked  by  extraordinary  boldness  and  vigor  of  treatment ;  but  they 
display  in  addition  a  rare  appreciation  of  the  subtler  characteristics 
of  the  animal  world.  Each  of  our  four-footed  friends  has  some 
peculiarities  of  attitude  or  expression  that  are  essentially  its  own — far 
more  distinctive,  indeed,  than  anymore  qualities  of  size  or  shape.  Of 
these  individual  traits  Mr.  Park  has  an  intuitive  perception,  and  his 
pictures  may  almost  be  said  to  live  upon  the  page. 


BRIGHT    AND    ORIGINAL    FAIRY    TALES 

THE  PRINCESS  OF  HEARTS 

By  SHEILA  E.  BRAINE.  With  70  Illustrations  by  ALICE  B. 
WOODWARD,  and  Frontispiece  in  Colors.  Square 
8vo,  gilt  edges,  $2.00. 

TO  TELL  THE  KING  THE  SKY  IS  FALLING 

By  SHEILA  E.  BRAINE.    With  85  Illustrations  by  ALICE  B. 

WOODWARD.    Square  crown  8vo,  $1.75. 
A  most  original  fairy  tale,  In  which  Henny  Penny,  Ducky  Daddies, 
and  other  old  friends  are  met. 

THE  LITTLE  BROWNS 

By  MABEL  E.  WOLTON.  With  80  Illustrations  by  H.  M. 
BROCK,  and  a  Colored  Frontispiece.  Square  8vo, 
gilt  edges,  $2.00. 

THE  TROUBLES  OF  TATTERS 

And  Other  Stories.  By  ALICE  TALWIN  MORRIS.  With  62 
charming  Illustrations  in  black  and  white  by  ALICE  B. 
WOODWARD.  Square  8vo,  $1.25, 

The  author  of  these  stories  is  evidently  able  to  talk  with  beasts  and 
birds  in  their  own  language  and  here  puts  dowa  the  important  infor- 
mation gained  in  a  style  that  children  will  find  absorbing  and  their 
elders  tender  and  sympathetic. 


28  BOOKS  FOR  YOUZfO  PEOPLE 

SOME  BOOKS  FOR  GIRLS 

THE  REIGN  OF  THE  PRINCESS  NASKA 

By  AMELIA  HUTCHISON  STIRLING.  With  55  Illustrations 
by  PAUL  HARDY.  12mo,  $1.00. 

THE  WHISPERING  WINDS 

And  the  Tales  that  they  Told.  By  MAKY  H.  DEBENHAM. 
With  25  Illustrations  by  PAUL  HARDY.  Crown  8vo,  $1 .00. 

"  We  wish  the  winds  would  tell  us  stories  like  these." 

— London  Academy. 

THINGS  WILL  TAKE  A  TURN 

By  BEATRICE  HARRADEN,  author  of  "Ships  that  Pass  in  the 
Night."  Illustrated.  12mo,  81.00. 

It  is  the  story  of  a  Runny-hearted  child,  Rosebud,  who  assists  her 
grandfather  in  his  dusty,  second-hand  bookshop. 

NAUGHTY  MISS  BUNNY 

Her  Tricks  and  Troubles.  By  CLARA  MULHOLLAND.  Illus- 
trated. Crown  8vo,  75  cents. 

"  This  naughty  child  is  positively  delightful." — Land  and  Water. 

UNLUCKY 

A  Fragment  of  a  Girl's  Life.  By  CAROLINE  AUSTIN.  Illus- 
trated. Crown  8vo,  75  cents. 

A  touching  story  of  an  unlucky  girl  at  odds  with  her  stepmother. 

LAUGH  AND  LEARN 

The  Easiest  Book  of  Nursery  Lessons  and  Nursery  Games. 
By  JENNETT  HUMPHREYS.  Charmingly  Illustrated.  Square 
8vo,  $1.25. 

"  One  of  the  best  books  of  the  kind  imaginable,  full  of  practical  teach- 
ing in  word  and  picture,  and  helping  the  little  ones  pleasantly  along  a 
right  royal  road  to  learning." — Graphic. 

ADVENTURES  IN  TOYLAND 

By  EDITH  KING  HALL.     With  8  Colored  Plates  and  72 
other  Illustrations  by  ALICE  B.  WOODWARD.     Square 
8vo,  $2.00. 
The  story  of  what  a  little  girl  heard  and  saw  in  a  toy  shop. 


BOOKS  FOB  TOTING  PEOPLE  2? 

SOME  BOOKS  FOR  GIRLS 

THE  LADY  ISOBEL 

A  Story  for  Girls.    By  ELIZA  F.  POLLARD.    With  4  Illus- 
trations by  W.  FULTON  BROWN.    12mo,  $1.00. 
A  Tale  of  the  Scottish  Covenanters. 

A  GIRL  OF  TO-DAY 

By  ELLINOR  DAVENPORT  ADAMS.     With  6  page  Illustra- 
tions by  GERTRUDE  DEMAIN  HAMMOND,  R.  I.    Crown 

8vo,  $1.25. 

The  boys  and  girls  of  Woodend  band  themselves  together,  and  that 
they  have  plenty  of  fun  is  seen  in  the  shopping  expedition  to  purchase 
stores  for  their  society,  and  in  the  successful  Christmas  entertain- 
ment. Max  Brenton's  light  with  Joe  Baker,  the  bully,  shows  that 
their  work  has  its  serious  side  as  well. 

A  DREADFUL  MISTAKE 

By  GERALDINE  MOCKLER.    With  4  page  Illustrations  by 
WILLIAM  RAINEY,  R.  I.    Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

The  mistake  occurs  at  the  very  beginning  ot  the  book,  gradually 
rights  itself  during  the  course  of  the  story,  and  at  the  end  is  found  to 
be  the  very  best  thing  that  could  have  happened.  A  very  amusing 
character  is  an  eccentric  aunt,  entirely  absorbed  in  the  care  of  her 
beloved  plants,  till  the  children  win  her  interest  and  affection.  Shb 
lives  on  the  Devonshire  coast,  and  her  young  visitors  have,  during 
their  stay  there,  many  delightful  and  dangerous  adventures. 

HER  FRIEND  AND  MINE 

A  Story  of  Two  Sisters.    By  FLORENCE  COOMBE.    With  3 
Illustrations  by  WM.  RAINEY.     12mo,  $1.00. 

THE   EAGLE'S  NEST 

By  S.  E.  CARTWRIQHT.     With  3  Illustrations   by  WM. 
RAINEY.    12mo,  $1.00. 

MY  FRIEND  KATHLEEN 

By  JENNIE  CHAPPELL.    With  4  Illustrations  by  JOHN  H. 
BACON.    12mo,  $1.00. 


so 


BOOKS  FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLE 


SOME  BOOKS  FOR  GIRLS 


Nell's  School  Days.  A  Story 
of  Town  and  Country.  By 
H.  P.  GETHEN.  With  4  Il- 
lustrations. Price,  SI  00. 

Violet  Vereker's  Vanity.  By 

ANNIE  E.  ARMSTRONG.  With 

6   Illustrations    by    G.  D. 

HAMMOND.       Crown      8vo, 

$1/25. 

Tlie  story  of  a  girl  with  one 
weakness,  which  she  finally  over- 
came. 

Three  Bright  Girls.   A  Story 
of  Chance  and   Mischance. 
By  ANNIE   E.   ARMSTRONG. 
With  6  full-page  Illustra- 
tions  by    W.    PARKINSON. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 
"  Among  many  good  stories  for 
girls  this  is  undoubtedly  one   of 
the  very  best." — Tt ackers'  Aid. 

A  Very  Odd  Girl.  Life  at  the 
Gabled  Farm.  By  ANNIE 
E.  ARMSTRONG.  With  6 
full-page  Illustrations  by 
S,  T.  DADD.  Crown 
$1.25. 

"  We  can  heartily  recommend 
the  book,  for  it  is  not  only  bright 
and  interesting,  but  also  pure  and 
hea'thy  in  tone  and  teaching." — 
The  Lady. 

White  Lilac :  Or,  The  Queen 
of  the  May.  By  AMY  WAL- 
TON. Illustrated.  Crown 
8vo,  $1.00.. 

By  MARGARET  PARKER 
For  the  Sake  of  a  Friend. 

A  Story  of  School  Life.  Il- 
lustrated. Crown  8vo,  $1. 00. 

A  bright  story  of  two  good  girl 
friends. 


A  Daughter  of  Erin.  By 
VIOLET  G.  FINNY.  With  4 
Illustrations.  Piice,  §1.00. 

Under  False  Colors.  A  Story 
from  Two  Girls'  Lives.  By 
SARAH  DOCDNEY.  With  6 
full  page  Illustrations  by 
G.  G.  KILBURNE.  Crown 
8vo,  $1.25. 

A  story  which  has  in  it  so  strong 
a  dramatic  element  that  it  will  at- 
tract readers  of  all  ages  and  of 
either  sex.  The  incidents  of  the 
plot,  arising  from  the  thoughtless 
indulgence  of  a  deceptive  freak, 
are  exceedingly  natural,  and  the 
keen  interest  of  the  narrative  is 
sustained  from  beginning  to  end. 

Miss    Willowburn's    Offer. 

By  SARAH  DOTJDNEY.   Illus- 
trated.    Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 

"  Sarah  Dondney  has  no  superior 
as  a  writer  of  high-toned  stories  ; 
pure  in  style,  original  in  concep- 
tion, and  with  skilfully  wrought- 
out  plots." — Christian  Leader. 

The  Secret  of  the  Old  House. 

A  Story  for  Children.  By 
EVELYN  EVERETT  GREEN. 
With  4  full -page  Illustra- 
tions by  L.  LESLIE  BROOKE. 
Crown  8vo,  $1.00. 
"Tim,  the  litUe  Jacobite,  is  a 
charming  creation." — Academy. 

By  M.  CORBET-SEYMOUR 
A    Girl's    Kingdom.     Illus- 
trated.    Crown  8vo,  $1. 00. 
Olive  and  her  story  will  receive 
welcome  from  all  girls. 
/ 

Dulcie  King :  A  Story  for 
Girls.  Illustrated.  Crown 
8vo,  $1.00. 

"  An  extremely  graceful  well- 
told  tale." 


BOOKS  FOR   TOUNO  PEOPLE  si 


SOME  BOOKS  FOR  GIRLS 


A  GIRL'S  LOYALTY 

By  FKANCES  ARMSTRONG.      With  8  Illustrations  by  JoiiK  H. 

BACON.     Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

Helen  Grant  received  from  her  grandfather  on  his  death-bed  a  secret 
message.  This  influenced  her  whole  life,  but  she  was  loyal  to  her  trust 
and  to  her  friends. 

A  FAIR  CLAIMANT 

Being  a  Story  for  Girls.     By  FRANCES  ARMSTRONG.    With  8 
full-page  Illustrations  by  GERTRUDE  D.  HAMMOND.   Crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 
An  exciting  story  of  a  young  girl,  the  rightful  heir  to  a  large  fortune, 

who  has  been  kept  out  of  it,  but  who  most  honorably  regains  it,  after 

much  trial  and  difficulty. 

THE  CLEVER  MISS  FOLLETT 

By  J.  K.  H.  DENNY.     With  12  full-page  Illustrations  by  GER- 
TRUDE D.  HAMMOND.    Crown  8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 
The  story  of  a  great  fortune  and  its  attendant  train  of  misfortunes. 

THE  HEIRESS  OF  COURTLEROY 

By  ANNE  BEALE.  With  8  page  Illustrations  by  T.  C.  H. 
CASTLE.  Crown  8vo,  cloth  elegant,  olivine  edges,  $1.50. 

"Miss  Anne  Beale  relates  how  the  young  '  Heiress  of  Courtleroy  '  bad 
such  good  influence  over  her  uncle  cis  to  win  him  from  his  intensely  i elfish 
ways  in  regard  to  his  tenants  and  others." — London  Guardian. 

A  TRUE  CORNISH  MAID 

By  G.  NORWAY.     With  6  full-page  Illustrations  by  J.  FINNE- 

MORE.     Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 

A  story  of  the  Cornish  coast  when  the  press-gang  brought  terror  into 
all  its  seaports,  and  smuggling  was  an  everyday  practice.  The  heroine 
of  the  tale  is  sister  to  a  young  fellow  who  gets  into  trouble  in  landing  a 
contraband  cargo  and  shooting  the  officer  in  charge  of  the  press-ging. 

GIRL  NEIGHBORS 

Or,  The  Old  Fashion  and  the  New.  By  SARAH  TTTLER.  With 
8  full-page  Illustrations  by  C.  T.  GARLAND.  Crown  8vo, 
$1.00. 

"  '  Girl  Neighbors  '  is  a  pleasant  comedy,  not  FO  much  of  errors  as  of 
prejudices  got  rid  of,  very  healthy,  very  agreeable,  and  very  well  writ- 
ten.''— London  Spectator. 


BOOKS'  FOR  YOUSO  PEOPLE 


SOME  BOOKS  FOR  GIRLS 


By  ALICE  CORKRAN 
Down    the     Snow     Stairs. 

Or,    From    Good-night    to 
Good -morning.      By  ALICE 
CORKRAN.     With  60  charac- 
ter Illustrations  by  GORDON 
BROWNE.       Square    crown 
8vo,  olivine  edges,  $1.25. 
"A  gem  of  the  first  water,  bear- 
ing upon  every  one  of  its  pages  the 
signet  mark  of  genius.    .    .    .    All 
is   told  with  such  simplicity  and 
perfect  naturalness  that  the  dream 
appears  to  be  a  solid  reality.     It  is 
indeed  a  Little  Pilgrim's  Progress. " 
—  Christian  Leader. 

Margery  Merton's  Girlhood. 

By  ALICE  CORKRAN.  With 
6  full-page  Illustrations  by 
GORDON  BROWNE.  Crown 
8vo,  $1.25. 

The  experience  of  an  orphan 
girl  who  in  infancy  is  left  by  her 
father,  an  officer  in  India,  to  the 
care  of  an  elderly  aunt  residing 
near  Paris. 

Meg's   Friend.      By   ALICE 
CORKRAN.   With  6  full-page 
Illustrations     by     EGBERT 
FOWLER.    Crown  8vo,  $1.25. 
Meg  has  been  brought  up  by  a 
woman  who  abuses  the  trust.     She 
is  removed  to  a  lady's  school  and 
is  ultimately  taken  into  the  house 
of    a  mysterious  benefactor  who 
proves  to  be  her  grandfather.    Af- 
ter a  long  separation  she  once  more 
meets  the  friend  of  her  childhood. 

Adventures  of  Mrs.  Wish- 
ing-to=Be.  ByAucECoRK- 
RAN.       With    3    full- page 
Pictures  in  colors.     Crown 
8vo,  75  cents. 
A  book  of  charming  fairy  tales 
in    which  Cinderella,    Little    Bo- 
Peep,   and  other  old  friends  ap- 
pear. 


Joan's   Adventures    at   the 

North  Pole  and  Elsewhere. 
By  ALICE  CORKRAN.    Illus- 
trated.      Crown     8vo,    75 
cents. 
A  beautiful  dream-land  story. 

By  ROSA  MULHOLLAND 
Banshee  Castle.  Illustrated. 

Crown  8vo,  $1.50. 

The  story  of  three  bright  and 
lively  young  girls  who  fall  heir  to 
an  old  castle  in  the  west  of  Ireland. 
Tneir  struggles  to  live  in  it  on  lit- 
tle money,  and  their  strange  expe- 
riences, are  deeply  interesting. 

Four  Little  Mischiefs.    Il- 
lustrated.    Crown  8vo,    75 
cents. 
"  A  charming  bright  story  about 

real  children." — Watchman. 

Giannetta.     A  Girl's  Story  of 
Herself.  Illustrated.  Crown 
8vo,  $1.50. 
"Extremely  well  told  and  full 

of  interest.'' — Academy. 

Hetty  Gray :    Or,  Nobody's 
Bairn.    Illustrated.   Crown 
8vo,  $1.00. 
"Hetty  is  a  delightful  creature, 

piquant,  tender,  and  true.'' — Lon- 

don  World. 

The  Late  Miss  Hollingford. 

Illustrated.     Crown  8vo,  75 

cents. 

This  story  was  a  special  favorite 
of  Charles  Dickens,  and  the  title 
was  chosen  by  him. 

By  MRS.  R.  H.  READ 
Dora:  Or,  A  Girl  without  a 

Home.   Illustrated.    Crown 

8vo,  $1.25. 

"  It  is  no  slight  thing  to  g=-t  a 

story  so  pure  and  healthy  as  this." 

— Academy. 


CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 


UNIV.  OF  CALIF.  LIBRARY,  LOS  ANGELES 


